Recently, an article was published stating that Belgians want more zest for life. Zest for life was one of the most important topics on which Belgians wanted to work, other than fatigue and depression. There are different ways in which to increase your zest for life. Below, we give you some tips on how you can work on your zest for life on an everyday basis.
Tip 1: Reduce stress
It seems easy to say this, but on a daily basis, many people experience unhealthy stress. This stress does not only influence our mood, but can also have muscle tension, headache, and even depression as consequences. Reducing your daily stress can thus work miracles on your zest for life. Of course, it is in many cases not easy to avoid or eliminate the situation which causes your stress out of your life. That is why there are some techniques which help you to reduce stress, without needing to avoid stressful situations.
Tip 2: Change your perspective of negative situations
Everyone comes into contact with situations which they would have preferred to have avoided. In many cases, changing the way you look at the situation can help a lot. For example, your pressure at work is too high, or your boss comes in every day to ask if you can do extra work. There are many people who either just say yes, or have a very emotional and frustrated response to this question from their boss. A technique can be to not blame yourself if you do not get everything done that day, but rather to focus on what you did get done. Changing the way in which you perceive negative situations of course does not happen overnight and requires some work. But you will notice that your zest for life will increase.
Tip 3: Do more sports
I know, you do not like to hear it and you do not have time for it. Oftentimes, people are so busy in their mind with what they still have to do during their day, that they forget to take care of one of the most important things in life: yourself. If you namely do not take care of yourself, you will experience more stress, some relationships might become strained, and you get ill more often. There are exercises which take just fifteen minutes or half an hour per day, which can significantly improve your mental and physical health. Furthermore, certain happiness hormones are released into your body after sports, which is great when it comes to improving your zest for life.
Tip 4: Sleep more efficiently
Many Belgians have issues sleeping. This, too, is linked to your zest for life as well as to depression. A good night's sleep can work miracles when it comes to your mood and efficiency level for that day. Certain therapeutic techniques can help you to find out why you do not sleep well and what you can do to improve your sleeping pattern.
Tip 5: Learn to deal with difficult situations
Just like learning to deal with stress and changing the way in which you perceive certain situations, learning to handle difficult situations plays a large part in your zest for life. It is also sometimes called a coping strategy. This means that, by looking at your parents, own experiences, and so on, you have learned to deal with certain situations in a certain way. However, in some cases people choose for an unhealthy coping method, which means that depression and stress are likely to occur for that person. For example, by isolating yourself after a divorce, working too much, no longer studying because of poor test results, and so on. You can learn to use a healthy coping method, which can help you to deal with difficult situations in a way that is efficient and improves your zest for life.
Put these tips for zest for life into practise!
15 Minutes 4 Me developed, together with doctors, psychotherapists and psychologists, a program which guides people on a daily basis with:
- Treating psychological problems, such as stress, depression, and anxiety
- Increasing your zest for life
