4 Tips for a Happier, Healthier Home

People spend most of their time at home, so why shouldn't they create their ideal home environment? Unfortunately, with busy schedules, less free time, and increasingly fast-paced lifestyles, it's becoming more and more difficult to curate happy and healthy homes. If you're looking for ways to make your abode more of a sanctuary, here are some tips you can implement right away. 

1. Separate Work and Home

Many people either work from home or have to complete some work at home after they're finished at the office for the day or week, but that stress of completing work can bleed into other areas of your life quickly. Your home should be a place you can relax in, and wandering the halls while you work out a problem can make it difficult to relax in those same spaces later. If you have the room for a separate office, try to keep all work-related activities confined to this room. If you don't have a separate room to spare, try making an "office" out of a corner in your dining room, or even at the kitchen table. So long as you restrict work activities to one area, you can still reap the benefits of separating your work life from your home life. 

2. Help Future You

If you've ever mumbled, "I'll do it tomorrow," and then cursed your past self for not running the dishwasher in the morning, you know how frustrated it is trying to get a start to your day while care tasks pile up around you. If you can use DCIM software to manage data and IT assets from anywhere, you can find a system for managing yourself at home. Start by setting a timer for five minutes and just tidy the things around you, or do a quick sweep of each room. This helps make your space a tad more functional the following day. If you know you struggle picking out an outfit, do it the night before. Pack your lunch, set up the coffee maker, and place your wallet and keys where you know you'll find them before you go to sleep. These little changes can help you start your day off right, which will help propel you through the rest of the day.

3. Stack Your Habits

If you want to develop healthy habits, try habit stacking. You can build new habits into the ones you already do, like showering or eating breakfast at the same time every day. This technique helps you by grouping your new goals with the strong network your brain has already built, so instead of using precious decision-making energy and forcing yourself to do something new each and every day, you simply stack the new habit with things you do without thinking. Over time, you can stack multiple new habits into your routine.

4. Surround Yourself With Things You Like

If you want your home to be a place of safety, familiarity, and comfort, decorate it with things you like. By surrounding yourself with reminders of positive experiences and memories, you'll automatically be in a better mood. These can be photos that remind you of family and friends during positive moments of your life, or they can be decorations or elements of a hobby you enjoy. Not only will this remind you of those things and times, but it can inspire you to grow and plan new experiences and goals. For example, maybe that picture from a hike last year will remind you to get outdoors more.

While all of these things can help you create a healthier, happier home, it's also important to consider others. Don't forget to communicate openly and freely. If anyone feels judged, you may unknowingly be fostering an unhealthy environment, even if it seems like these tips are working for you. When you consider the feelings of others and work hard to take care of yourself, your home can become the escape you need from the outside world.