How you define an epic life for yourself may be different from what someone else would. We all wish to live a happy life, whether in our careers, finances, or personal goals.
To really help accomplish this, a strategy for your valuable downtime in the evening helps you to focus time and energy on what’s important during your uptime. Sleep is important to function successfully, but before you head off to bed, check out these things that can put you in a positive frame of mind.
Here Are Five Things Happy People Do Right Before Bed
1. Plan For Tomorrow
People who live happy lives know that they have an important event, project, or presentation tomorrow, so take time before bed to rehearse it in their minds or aloud with the help of family. For example, lay out the clothes that you will wear tomorrow. Visualize yourself wearing that outfit and having people praise you for how successful you were and how great you sounded and looked.
Planning and preparing before bed set the scene for success. There is a fine line here that could cross over into worrying about the future, but these people focus on the positive. They know they have prepared enough and will shine in the morning.
This is not last-minute cramming to complete a project because people living their dreams don’t procrastinate. This is a time to put the finishing flourish on things so they run smoothly in the morning.
2. Bond With Family
Before settling into bed for the night, this group of people realizes that spending quality time with family and friends makes life the happiest. This could be simply some pillow talk with their partner, allowing them to share their thoughts in an intimate environment. Or it might be reading a bedtime story to the kids at night.
Setting aside time for those most important to you show that you care. It strengthens relationships with those whose support is important to your success. Like the Oscar winners who thank spouses and family members during acceptance speeches, you need to thank your support system by giving them your valuable time. You couldn’t do it all without them.
Time, once spent, can never be regained. This is one motto that these people take seriously. They prioritize everything and spend time wisely, even before bed. No one in their old age wishes that they had watched more TV. Make time for the family now.
3. Read
Reading before bed gets your mind into a thoughtful, relaxed state and has been a longstanding habit for many reasons; pleasure, information, inspiration and distraction. Looking to live as big as a top CEO? Here’s a suggested reading list from several of them.
Relaxation is the most common reason that successful people read before bed. According to a study by the University of Sussex, subjects could reduce stress levels by 68% by reading. Only six minutes of silent reading were needed to reduce heart rate and muscle tension.
4. Write Down What’s On Their Minds
Some people have difficulty falling asleep due to the day’s stress. Things play out over and over again in their minds. They try to solve the day’s problems and often lose sleep.
Happy people know that tomorrow is another day, and those problems will remain. Having a good night’s rest will only make them better able to tackle those problems tomorrow.
But sometimes, the most well-rested minds can forget by the following morning. By quickly jotting down the list of thoughts in their mind, they relieve the memory function of their brain. Now they don’t have to worry about remembering something in the morning.
Make it a practice to keep a notebook and pen by your bed so you can quickly jot down your to-do list, grocery list, project list, a journal entry and get it out of your valuable brain space. Now you have more room for sweet dreams.
5. Think Happy Thoughts
Even something as simple as being thankful for the warm blanket and comfy bed you’re snuggling into at night puts you in a positive mindset. Happy people look back at what they accomplished for the day with pride. They reflect with gratitude on all that they have learned and accomplished.
Several studies seem to show that making a list of things people are grateful for before bed leads to longer, more restful sleep and less worry at bedtime. Positive thoughts replace negative ones and set the tone for a relaxed sleep.
An optimistic mindset is a great way to drift off to sleep. Instead of worrying about what needs to be done, you’re focused on the great things that have already happened. Knowing that great things have already come to you helps set the expectation for more of the same.
People do more when more is expected of them. This is known as the Pygmalion Effect. When we reflect on our past success before bed, we expect great things of ourselves. We create a self-fulfilling prophecy of our greatness.
With these five things accomplished before bed, you will unburden your mind, spend time with the important people in your life, and fall asleep with positive thoughts. You’ll successfully achieve blissful rest, and you’ll awake ready to conquer the world.
