Every night before you head off to bed, write down with pen and paper:
- Three good experiences you had during the day, and
- why those good experiences happened, or
- why you think these were good experiences.
You will soon find that:
- This habit is easily maintained. It takes about fifteen minutes, and you can quickly get back into practice if you miss a day.
- It becomes an effective way to remind yourself of all the wonderful things that happen in your life regularly. We all need reminders from time to time.
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But what happens if I struggle to find even three good things today?
Some days are harder than others, definitely. If that is a genuine statement, then I won’t resort to a platitude (e,g, there’s always a silver lining! as the Americans like to say) or tell you to get over it. Few people actively wish for a shitty day.
But if you’ve done this exercise for a while, you can take a look back at your previous entries when you’re in a slump. Perhaps a brief visit to a past memory is all you need to keep on going.
Rotten days are rotten for a reason, and remembering three good things that happened during the day won’t change that. But over time, those rotten days become less suffocating and dominating — especially in comparison to everything else that has gone well in your life.
I like this exercise because it’s a good way to stay sane and in good spirits.
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My good neighbors Brian and Maja have been making this a daily conversation topic at night, and I do enjoy hearing what they have to say. I got the idea from them.