How to Gain a Healthy Mindset
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When I was in college the “Freshman 15” hit me pretty hard, making me obsessed with losing weight, what I ate and how often I went to the gym. I was always going out and seemed like I was happy and had my whole life together, but it was all a facade.
Although my body and attitude seemed healthy, my mind was a toxic place filled with negative self-talk, anxiety and unrealistic expectations for myself. Eventually, I hit a breaking point and couldn’t hide my feelings any longer, but instead of taking control of my thoughts I hid myself away in my home — focused on work and school and nothing else…until I hit a breaking point again fueled by pure anxiety and depression.
I finally decided enough was enough and faced the monster I feared the most: my own mind.
I heard a saying once that “You are only as healthy as your mind,” so I dove headfirst into working on my mindset. Of course, this was one of the most uncomfortable things I’d ever done and I stumbled through the process. Along the way, I learned what patterns were holding me back and which habits had the power to change my thoughts and my entire life.
When our thoughts are unhealthy, we tend to succumb to insecurity, uncertainty, overwhelm, and worry. This is no fun for any of us and takes a toll on the value of our life. I want to share with you 10 ways to cultivate a healthy mindset so you can start living healthier and happier.
What Is A Healthy Mindset?
A healthy mindset is finding a way to take control of your thoughts instead of giving them the power to control your life.
Now, I’m sure when you picture a person with a positive mindset you envision someone who always lights up every room they walk into and sings of sunshine, daisies and rainbows. In the movies that may the way of it, but in reality have you ever met a single person like that? Like, ever?
My guess is no, but you’ve probably met someone who was genuinely happy, confident and invested in their conversation with you. You can always tell when someone is putting on a brave face and when they’re genuinely present & happy. This attitude comes from mastering a healthy mindset.
You can have a healthy mindset even if you feel negative sometimes. Rather than dwelling on a negative thought until it becomes overwhelming, a healthy mindset works to either move beyond that thought or accept it.
So, what do you need to gain a healthy mindset? Let’s get into that right now!
01. Accept Yourself
Accepting yourself where you are is a task almost all of us have struggled with at some point in our lives. We always seem to think if we look a certain way, do a certain thing, have a certain amount of money, or what have you, then we’ll finally be able to accept ourselves. The problem with that mentality though, is we can’t succeed to the next level when we don’t feel like a success in the stage of life we’re currently in.
Now, I understand you’re not going to read this and say “great, I love myself! That was easy!” This process takes time and requires you to be honest with yourself.
For some reason, we find it easy to love things about the people around us, but seeing the beauty in ourselves seems almost impossible. There are so many wonderful and unique traits each of us has that we can’t see on our own so ask your circle of friends and family to write a list of everything they love about you. Not tell you, write a list — that way when you need the help to see all the amazing things about you that others do, you can grab it and read it as many times as you need until you start seeing it yourself. Make a list for them, as well. You never know if they may be struggling with their own self-acceptance the same way you are now.
Start journaling each morning or at least 3 times a week. Write about how you feel, what brings you joy, what you struggle with, how you want your life to look, how you can express love and compassion for yourself today. Anything that makes you feel seen & accepted, write it down! Soon enough it’ll become second nature and you’ll stop having to look so hard to find the beauty in yourself. You may even get to know yourself better and discover a whole new side of who you are and what you’re capable of.
My favorite daily journal is the Five-Minute Journal — seriously you only need to take five minutes out of your morning to set a positive tone for the day! If you’re struggling to get started and need a little more guidance towards accepting yourself and changing your mindset the Worry for Nothing Guided Journal is the perfect place for you to face your thoughts and begin changing them.
02. Focus on What You CAN Control
As much as I wish you could snap your fingers and control all the troubles around you, it’s just not the way the world works.
You can’t control the actions of others, but you can control how you react. People have been saying and doing hurtful things to us since we were in kindergarten — telling us we had cooties or refusing to share their toys with us. It’s an unfortunate part of the world, but it doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon, so you might as well learn to roll with the punches and accept the things you can’t control as just that…things you can’t control.
When people say or do mean or degrading things to you, or life doesn’t work out the way you wanted it to, learn to ignore the negativity and focus on what’s important to you and who you are. People have the right to be assholes, and you have the right not to care one single bit!
Don’t let the distractions of what other people are saying and doing sit in the driver’s seat of your life. There are only two outcomes from you letting that happen: you either never reach your destination or you waste a lot of time getting there. Either way, the only person who pays the price for that…is you.
03. Find a Method to Calm Your Mind
The ability to calm your mind when you’re feeling under pressure is crucial. When your thoughts are all over the place, seeing things for what they really are can become very difficult and overwhelming.
Finding a way to calm your mind and center yourself allows you to stop time for a little, process what’s happening around and inside of you, then find the appropriate place for those thoughts. It’s up to you whether that place is somewhere in your mind so that you can grow from it & channel that energy correctly or its place is in the trash.
My go-to practices for calming my mind is through a 10-minute morning meditation so I can proactively prepare for troubling thoughts that may arise or by taking a walk in nature. The Calm App is my favorite tool to use for each morning. They also have a collection of meditations, music and soundscapes that pair perfectly with taking a walk and getting outside to clear your mind.
04. Appreciate the Little Things
This tip is more than just a cute quote we find in most home décor sections. The little moments in life are what makes our life worth living.
Think back on your childhood. Do you remember playing board games with your family? Enjoying a meal and talking about your day together? Christmas mornings itching to open your presents but spending most of your day simply being together? How about times that seemed tough like having to do without material things due to money, but feeling every ounce of love your friends and family share with you?
Everyday, ordinary moments like these are priceless and taking the time to appreciate and be grateful for them makes a huge difference in how we feel about our days and lives. Something as simple as enjoying a cup of tea without technology, or meditating can go a long way in feeling happier and promoting mental clarity.
05. Reflect on Yourself & Learn From Your Mistakes
We all make mistakes. It’s just a fact of life. What’s important is that we learn & grow from them. We can let the hard parts of life make us slip into a victim mentality and ask “why is it always me?” Or we can reflect on how we got into that situation and move forward.
This can be applied to every facet of life: relationships, health habits, finances, business, time management, every thing you could ever imagine facing in life…they can all teach us a lesson.
Creating a healthy mindset requires you to accept hurdles in life as lessons rather than as punishments that stop you from succeeding. Life is an experiment for all of us. Adopt an evolutional way of thinking so that you can fall back on the plan to evolve past your trials & tribulations, then become stronger.
06. Be Present & Live In The Moment
It’s easy to get caught up in life’s craziness and keep waiting to enjoy yourself until the weekend or your next vacation, but only enjoying 30% of your life at best is no way to live.
Setting your sights on the future and establishing goals for yourself is certainly a healthy thing to do, but don’t forget to enjoy your life as you work towards them. Find a job you enjoy, enjoy the sunrise, sunset, and commute to work, have real conversations with people, stop spending all your time in a cellphone filled with everyone’s highlights of life — most not even real, but just designed to get a lot of likes. Wake up and smell the dang roses! Romanticize your life!
07. Stop Comparing Yourself to Others So Harshly
I know it’s hard, but stop comparing yourself to everyone else with so much force! Everyone is on their own path in life. While we may walk closely next to others — share similar ideas, values and goals — no two of us are on the exact same path.
Comparison is a part of human nature. No matter how hard we try not to, we just can’t help but do it. The key to not letting it consume you and take a toll on your life if by shifting your mindset in the moment. Have compassion towards yourself and allow the thoughts you have fuel you rather than sabotage your success.
Find yourself comparing your net worth, fitness level, happiness and life to to others? Acknowledge the thoughts as they come and if it’s genuinely something you want, let those thoughts change from jealousy to motivation. Start making better financial habits, working out & eating healthier, taking care of your mindset with daily habits that make you happy.
Almost everything you see others have that you want are possible if you work for them. Don’t pressure yourself into being perfect because even the people you’re comparing yourself to aren’t perfect. Accept yourself, set healthy expectations, and trust yourself and the journey you’re on.
08. Make Healthy Food Choices
The food you eat isn’t just about achieving a healthy body, but also has a huge effect on your mind and memory. The term “brain food” has definitely earned its name. Good nutrition allows you to feel good from the inside out.
Here are a few foods that have been proven to boost your brain power:
Fatty Fish - Salmon, Trout, Tuna, Sardines
Omega-3’s build brain & nerve cells essential for memory and learning, slow age-related mental decline
Not getting enough Omega-3’s is linked to learning impairments and depression
Coffee
Caffeine & antioxidants found in coffee have shown positive effects on the mind such as Increased Alertness, Improved Mood & Sharpened Concentration
Berries
Dark-colored berries such as blueberries, blackberries, cherries and strawberries deliver anti-inflammatory effects to the body, help improve communication between brain cells, and can help improve memory and brain aging
Oranges, Strawberries, Tomatoes, Kiwi, Guava & Bell Peppers
1 Orange a day can provide you with all the Vitamin C your body needs, which increases brain health & functions including memory, attention, focus, decision speed, anxiety, schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s
Dark Chocolate & Cocoa Powder — yes, really! Chocolate is good for you!
Dark Chocolate contains 70%+ cocoa content and promotes the brain’s learning and memory, is a total mood booster, and lowers the risk of heart disease
Turmeric
Curcumin — the active ingredient in turmeric — has been proven to enter the brain directly and benefit the cells by improving memory, easing depression, and also helps grow new brain cells.
The level of curcumin found in typical turmeric spices is only around 3%-6% so adding a concentrated curcumin supplement into your daily vitamins would help you achieve the best results
Broccoli
This power-packed plant includes antioxidants and high levels of Vitamin K which are essential for forming sphingolipids — a strong brain fat that supports brain memory and cognitive status
Pumpkin Seeds & Nuts
Pumpkin Seeds are jam-packed with amazing nutrients for brain health such as zinc, magnesium, iron and copper
Nuts are a fantastic brain food providing us with fiber, Vitamin E, Vitamin B6 & healthy fats. Some of the best nuts include Almonds, Pistachios, Walnuts, Pecans, Cashews, Macadamia Nuts, Hazelnuts and Peanuts
Green Tea
As mentioned before, caffeine boosts your brain’s functioning power and improves alertness, memory and focus. Unlike coffee, Green Tea also has L-theanine which can increase your brain’s activity of neurotransmitter GABA — helping to reduce anxiety and increase relaxation via alpha waves in the brain
09. Find A Hobby
Having a good work/life balance promotes a healthy mindset. Having time for yourself makes a huge difference in your happiness during and outside of work. Try something new, pick up a class you’ve been saying you want to take like pottery, or that wine + painting night you’ve been waiting to go out for, cooking & baking, creative writing, even blogging!
If you already have a hobby, then set aside some time each week to spend on it. Anything that helps you feel fulfilled and gives you a space to do something you enjoy!
10. Exercise
Elle Woods told us years ago about the mental health benefits of working out!
When we exercise, our body releases mood-boosting chemicals such as — you guessed it, endorphins — serotonin and dopamine which help combat pain, anxiety and depression. Not only do we receive a boost in brain happy hormones, but our cortisol levels are reduced (the main stress-causing chemical). Exercise also helps us feel more rested at night, increasing our sleep quality and helping us feel better when we wake up the next day. It’s the gift that keeps on giving day after day!
Please hear me when I say that these are not rules!
I don’t want you to look at this list and think you’re failing if you struggle with any of these tips. We all struggle sometimes, even for long periods of time. However, if you can take a few things from this list and make a conscious effort to work on them, you will start to see incredible growth in your mindset.
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