I started this year with a confused heart and intense fever. Lying in bed and not being able to do much made me reflect on how helpless I felt. This was in terms of health and heart, but also in terms of happiness and goals. So I did what a young girl trying to become her ideal powerful woman does best and decided that I wanted to feel and be more in control of my life. Here’s a sneak peak of my journey to becoming my own beacon of positivity!
- Sunshine Jar
This is definitely the easiest step you can take to instill positivity each day. Get a jar and label it your “Sunshine Jar”. When you look back at your day, no matter how small, search for one drop of happiness and cherish it. Mine go from simple things such as getting out of bed on a rough morning, to eating something I love, to extravagant road trips. Write these things down on small pieces of paper and collect them in your jar. Trust me, it’s fun, easy, and gives you so much good to look back on down days.
- Creating short term goals
Goals are hard to make and even harder to follow. I’ve tried this new thing where I’ve made very small and doable yet meaningful goals. Everyone has goals to get good grades and get a great job but these smaller goals should be things that really mean something to your heart. Set a handful of low maintenance goals for every 4-6 weeks and. Some of mine have been to shoot some hoops at the basketball court, to record a dance video to a song I’ve been thinking of, or to just begin work on a new personal project.
- Leaving the college environment
This is probably the most difficult to do but is by far my favorite. I strongly believe in being able to separate your work zone and happy zone. Living in a college city, once in a while you just need to totally remove yourself from the idea of college. I’m lucky to be in the Bay Area where it’s so easy for me to take a mini trip to the Marina, Emeryville or Albany Beach (all 15 minutes away), or daylong trips to Sausalito or Golden Gate Park. There’s so much to see, explore and experience that you’re bound to feel refreshed and full of hopeful positivity. Treat it as a mini escape and promise yourself to truly let yourself free. (Plus points if you create a fun vlog out of it)
- Writing down feelings
A lot of people hate doing this, but I really agree with what so many teachers say about the importance of physically writing on paper. There’s something about writing things down that helps you clear your head and lets your thoughts flow freely. Doing this before sleeping is already scientifically proven to be therapeutic. I like doing this every few days because it almost feels like I’m transferring thoughts from my head to the paper and subsequently making more room for positivity to enter.
- Spending more time with inspirational people
This isn’t as hard as it sounds. Whether it’s making a point to grab lunch with that friend you’ve been meaning to for so long, going on an overdue adventure with your bestie, or just picking up the phone to talk to a family member, each of these things bring both inspiration, positivity and love in your life. Physically having conversations with special people in your life gives you new ideas, important perspective and fresh motivation. There’s only one thing more important than your time, and it’s the people that you choose to spend it on.
Now go become your own beacon of positivity!!
Sunena Gupta 