Buying a new car or going on that vacation to the Maldives will definitely lighten your mood, but sadly, these things cost a lot of money. Thankfully, you can use these 18 inexpensive ways to significantly improve your life instead!
Reduce Your Screen Time
Social media is interesting, we know. Sadly, spending extended periods of time on your phone can lead to eye strain, deprive you of sleep, or permanently damage your social relations skills. Outside of work, it’s advised that you limit your screen time to just two hours per day for the best results.
Get a Bedtime Schedule
Of course, the same goes for a bedtime schedule! If you find it difficult to get regular amounts of sleep, a bedtime routine can provide more consistency. It helps you control your circadian rhythms, and an NLM study even calls it a cost-effective way to improve children’s behavior and development.
Sleep More
One easy way to immediately boost your quality of life is to get enough sleep. For adults, this means getting seven to nine hours of bedtime. When you sleep well, you improve your brain performance and lower your risk of suffering health issues like stroke and heart disease.
Create a Morning Routines
A morning schedule pushes you to get things done regardless of how you feel, clarifies what to prioritize, and helps you start the day productively. It’s a healthier, more consistent time and energy management practice than allowing your day to be controlled by your mood when you wake up.
Spend Time In Nature
Sitting in a park, stargazing, and visiting the beach are a few activities that keep you in touch with nature. You should take time out to do them whenever possible. Being in contact with nature improves your mood, reduces your frustration, and prevents you from dealing with many stress-related physical health issues.
Engaging in Mindfulness
Mayo Clinic defines mindfulness as focusing on your senses and the things happening around you, accompanying this with breathing exercises and visualization. You only need to spend 30 minutes per day doing this to reap benefits against anxiety, stress, sleep problems, and emotional mismanagement!
Spend More Time With Friends
Spending time with friends who have a positive, optimistic outlook about life is a free way to greatly improve your life. They’ll improve your self-confidence, discourage unhealthy habits, help you through hard times, or just be there to hang out. Good friends are truly invaluable.
Buy Silicon Mittens
Here’s one for the kitchen: have you ever been hurt when your cloth mittens absorbed hot water or steam? Silicon mittens are waterproof and steam-proof, and they’ll protect you from heat up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. They’re easier to clean, too, and a cheap way to improve your kitchen experience.
Declutter Your Space
Decluttering your space has immense benefits for your cognitive and overall mental health, and it’s free! It’ll help you feel less stressed and frustrated in your living or working space, and the University of Georgia explains that decluttering actually helps with allergies and asthma!
Get Yourself a Car Charger
Getting a car charger means you won’t have to delay going out again because your phone is low on battery. The best part is that most come with dual USB ports, allowing you to safely charge more than one device. It’s little purchases like this that make all the difference.
Add Motion-Sensor Light to Dark Areas at Home
Battery-powered motion-sensor lights allow you to maneuver dark areas of your home easily at night without unnecessarily increasing your energy costs, and they’re inexpensive. It’s something few people consider, but when they eventually buy them, they can’t imagine living without them!
Jog Everyday
Everyone understands the benefits of exercising, but gym memberships can get pretty expensive. Well, taking daily walks or having a daily jog routine is absolutely free! It’s an inexpensive way to control diabetes, build strong muscles, and boost your immunity, and it gets you outside in the fresh air.
Get a Phone Grip
If you use your smartphone a lot, you’ll know how holding it causes hand fatigue and how its large size makes it prone to accidental drops. Just grab a $9 phone grip; these attach to the back of your phone, making using it much more comfortable.
Make Your Meals Yourself
When you cook your breakfasts and dinners yourself, you control portion sizes, eat more healthy food, and improve your culinary skills. What’s even better is that, as Forbes tells us, you save five times more than ordering from restaurants, improving your money management.
Use Knife Sharpeners
A tiny detail that makes a huge difference in the kitchen is using a sharp knife. It’s faster and requires less energy, and getting yourself a sharpener ensures that you keep it this way. You also prevent injuries from slippages and increase the durability of your blades even further.
Reduce Alcohol Consumption
When you don’t drink as much alcohol as you do now, you see improvements in your moods, sleep patterns, and relationships with loved ones. Abandoning alcohol is also a decision you make now that will have positive effects on your physical health in decades to come, and you’ll have no more rotten hangovers!
Drink Plenty Water
Being in a constant state of thirst is uncomfortable, to say the least. The CDC associates dehydration with unclear thinking, mood changes, constipation, and kidney stones. Drinking water, especially when you aren’t thirsty, helps you maintain optimal energy levels, prevent headaches, and better manage weight loss. Once again, it’s free from your tap!
Learn Something New
Finally, if you want to make your life a little more interesting, learning a new language, personal skill, or hobby can give you something to look forward to. It’s a way to gain confidence in yourself, improve your knowledge base, and rediscover some of your abilities. Many of the best hobbies are also free or very cheap!
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