“Success in life is founded upon attention to the small things rather than to the large things.” – Booker T. Washington
Our lives are a large collection of single days one right after the other. The sun rises, sets, and rises again. And in the end, the lives we choose to live will be determined by how we choose to spend each day.
Unfortunately, for most of my life, I embraced little intentionality in my days. I survived each new day, but made little effort to making every day count. Instead, they simply just came and went… and many were wasted before I learned how to make the most of my day.
But over the past few years, my views have changed. I have begun to view each day as an important gift. I have sought to embrace each one individually and discover the potential that it holds. After all, some may get more days than others, but each of us have been given this one life. And we ought to be making the most of our lives.
Here are 10 ways to make the most of every day.
1. Wake up early.
Early mornings are quiet, peaceful, productive, energizing… and my favorite part of the day.
2. Eat right.
The food we put into our bodies becomes the fuel on which it runs. We are wise to make sure it is the right kind of fuel at every meal. Just be sure to include some protein in your breakfast, your mind will be sharper and clearer because of it.
3. Exercise.
According to recent studies, people who exercise regularly report to be happier, calmer, and better equipped to handle whatever the day decides to throw at them. Interestingly enough, the study seemed to indicate these benefits were experienced on a day-to-day basis, which means you can begin to experience them today by choosing to exercise just 20 minutes.
4. Accomplish one big task.
We all have projects, work, and requirements for our time – things that we need to accomplish. Likely, your to-do list is longer than you can accomplish in one day. But to make the most of this day, choose one big thing on your list and do it first. If you finish, move on to the next.
5. Do one thing that you love.
Apart from the day-to-day requirements of living life, you have dreams, goals, and hopes. You have hobbies that you love and activities that breathe life into who you are. Embrace these life-giving opportunities. And do one thing every day that you love.
6. Rest effectively.
Rest is as essential to our bodies as food and water and air. Our bodies need to be refreshed on a daily basis and a weekly basis. Don’t neglect to schedule rest. And don’t feel guilty about it when you do.
7. Be present with others.
Put away distractions. Engage in conversation. Ask questions. Give time for answers. And look people in the eye when you do. Their eyes reveal far more than their words.
8. Give to someone else.
Your fullest joy in life will not be found living it selfishly for yourself. Rather, the periods of greatest joy and fulfillment are found in the moments and motivations when we are choosing to give to others. Invest your life in someone else every day. Mentor a child. Help a co-worker. Fund a local charity. Or just make that phone call to a friend who needs to hear from you.
9 Nurture your soul.
Our lives are more than flesh and blood. They are also mind and heart and soul. Find time each day to feed your soul by embracing gratitude, laughter, hope, and faith.
10. Reset.
Tomorrow is another day with great potential and opportunity. You’ll want to begin it with a clean slate and a fresh start. Take 10 minutes each evening to clear the clutter and refresh your home for the next day. Tomorrow’s self will thank you for it.
Today is among the greatest gifts we have ever been given. Let’s use it wisely and refuse to waste a single one.
U really made my future to progress peacefully thanks to this program
It’s good not bad but I suggest more like activities
Who is the manager of this website
I need to talk to him
Thanks ????
Making the most of every day is a journey, not a destination. It’s about taking small steps each day to improve your life.
Exactly ????
Beautifully said!!
WHEN WE DO THESE THINGS A BODY WILL BE RELAX AND THEN WE CAN MAKE THE MOST OF EACH DAY
Hard work also
It really works fir me. I have followed Josh ever since. I have made some progress in my eat every day. Xxx thanks ? a ? plants based diet with some incredible results and purpose
Amazing
This is exactly how I do each day. It seems to be working .
Hello, thanku for explaining the steps .By using the right words
You basically defined livving and not existing.I plan to began my journey of making days count through structure.Startimg with
Sleeping schedule and being present daily . Waking. Up that’s the greatest. Purpose for change
All good goals but #1 isn’t met yet.
For me, it is usually 6:00am up between 7:00am.
Up at 8:00am will keep me up until past 11:00pm and sometimes later.
I don’t think I can do #3 good for #2.
Amazing ideas, thank you Joshua, I like # 7, 8 and 9 Nurture your soul and embrace soul or mind, heart hope, laugh, faith and so much more to be thankful for. Also like rising early and awake fully, so hard to do though.
I just want u’ll to star all of my change every day and update them for me if you have newupdate make my phone and all of me to alway start with the best change
This is one of the most important posts from you, Joshua. Each recommendation speaks to a piece of who I am and how to become who I want to be.
I will tell you that #7 speaks to some pain in me now that my children have grown. I wish I had been as present when they were growing as I try to be now. Although I do not have as much opportunity to be face to face with them, I hope to share with both of them the importance of this practice in their own lives.
Carpe diem!
Stay away from Yahoo .
Why
Thank-you for this simple list this week Joshua , we need these simple reminders to keep our eyes open to the traps and routines we can fall into. I have had two recent deaths at far too young of ages in my family this last month and I am done with trying to do too much in too little of time. I plan to change my path to say “No” more often in the coming year and focus on relationships and families more rather than extra side projects, volunteer needs and work. Trying to help and do everything isn’t the best choice and I think in the past year it has made me not “in the moment” for my friends and family. Additionally a lot of what I do involves social media and the constant engagement is taxing me. I need to find a way to manage it and not let it control me. Lastly, thank-you for your part in the Minimalist film, I watched it two nights ago and enjoyed it.
Thank you for such a good article. I looked and read so many articles but not impressed so much. I like step number 1 and 2 but rest of the steps are fine to kick start a productive yet happy life. God bless you Joshua!
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An outstanding share! I have just forwarded this onto a
colleague who was doing a little homework on this. And he actually bought
me dinner due to the fact that I discovered
it for him… lol. So allow me to reword this….
Thanks for the meal!! But yeah, thanx for spending time to discuss this issue
here on your web page.
Thanks to my father who informed me concerning this webpage, this
website is truly remarkable.
Going thru the hard work now of tossing all that doesnt matter. MY urge to purge is even stronger now.
Decorating for Christmas with only things I love. Only keeping what i love also.
Time to let go…in sooo many ways.
I am having trouble dealing with people who are stuck in old ways of spend and shop regardless of how much they already have and how far in debt they are. They have no interest in this, just not ready I guess.
Imagine if everyone followed these 10 steps daily…. We would live in a much happier world. Thank you for your wisdom.
For me going to the gym and doing a bit of cardio and a bit of serious weight lifting works miricles for stress, anxiety and depression. It kind of resets the brain chemistry, which is very much affected by stress.
Number 1 , rising early, is something I introduced into my life some years ago and it is no exaggeration to say it transformed my life in so many ways and on so many different levels. I really notice the difference to my day if my early morning rituals don’t happen for some reason.
Habits are such an important contributor to a fulfilling life.
Very well written post, thanks for sharing this. I will definitely follow this from today onwards. God has sent us for a specific purpose, but I think I delay the things by procrastinating. If we take each day as it comes with a definitive routine, life will be much more simpler and organised. I especially liked point no. 7 and point no.5, 7 and 10.
Pt. no. 5 – due to hustle bustle of daily life we usually forget things which we like doing, our child like hobbies. Those few minutes give immense Joy.
Pt. No 7- In this digital world, where we have connectivity with many people at the same time. It becomes difficult to be present with one person at a time. But ultimately those who talk to us frequently and want to be connected are the one’s who care for us or vice versa. I will surely be present for them now on.
Pt No 10 – Clear cutter so that tomorrow is easy.
All the points mentioned above are the ones which we already know in some form. But the way it is described above is a very good read and to act upon with immediate effect.
Thanks once again for writing this.