Happy & Healthy

RANDOM LIFE LESSONS THAT WILL MAKE YOU HAPPY

Well, whether you will actually become happy from it remains to be seen, but I, for one, am happy about it. I already wrote about it last week; it is wonderful to grow older, because wisdom comes with the years. So here are some random things I've learned over the past years that I wish I had known earlier. I would say: make the most of it.

Don't worry too much about others

So important. I wrote a piece about it for Glamour that is in stores this month. Bottom line: it makes no sense to worry about what others think of you, because you have no influence over it anyway. It saves you a lot of headaches.

“Just say ‘no’ to those pleading messages in your group chat”

Say ‘no’ more often’

You often hear that it's good for you to say ‘yes’ more often, but it's also damn liberating to say ‘no’ more often. A friend of a friend of a friend wants to have coffee with you to get career advice, exactly in the week (or month, or year for my part) that you are super busy? A simple: “Sorry, but I really don't have time right now” suffices. Come on, you're busy enough with things that are actually important. Or everyone is going out and you secretly prefer a night on your couch? Just say ‘no’ to those pleading messages in your group chat.

It's okay to ask for help

I'm terribly bad at asking for help and would rather work myself to the bone than admit that I can't do it. Most recent and most exemplary example: my renovation last year. I thought it was totally doable to paint my entire house by myself. In a few days. So that's not going to happen, and I was in blind panic. Thank goodness Jet was there to help me and it went quickly, unbelievably. Friends also come to me for help and I am always proud and honored when they do, so I should start doing the same more often.

Be kind to everyone

Because you never know who you might find sitting across from you in a job interview one day. Being kind costs nothing and it can yield you a lot, so that seems to me an extremely solid investment.

“There have been times when I earned more than I do now, but I always spent that money down to the last euro”

You don't have to be able to do everything

Especially for the perfectionists among us, that's easier said than done, but still. I have completely accepted it. Recently, I was with a group of friends in the Ardennes, nine of us, and because of Easter we had to stock up on food for three days. Off to the supermarket. Everyone seemed to know what they had to do, whole meals were planned and things were bought – and I stood there aimlessly. I can't figure out how much of what you need to buy to feed people. In the past, that made me terribly unhappy and clumsy, now I think: ‘Well, I can do other things.“ So I walk around the supermarket, observe people, and wait until everyone is done. Even while cooking, I do nothing, but I do set the table and am almost always the Chef of Clearing and Tidying. Kitchens give me the creeps because I feel completely powerless in them, so I leave that to others and do what I can. And that's really better for everyone.

Declutter your home

For some time now, at least my living room has always been neat. Really guys, I can't tell you how happy that makes me. For years it was always a huge pigsty and that affected my entire mood. Now everything is neat and my mind is too. Well, a little bit.

Set aside money monthly

There have been times when I earned more than I do now, but I always spent that money down to the last euro. Saving money? Haha, are you crazy, spend it! And quickly too! And now: regret it. But I'm improving my life and when a bill gets paid now, I immediately throw almost the entire amount into my savings account, so I can never just oops suddenly spend it. Let's see how long I can keep that up.