13 Ways I’ll Make My Life More Positive in 2024

Build Mindset: Stop talking to yourself like you aren’t your best friend. Most of us are unaware of that inner “loser” voice that talks to us like an a**hole. Build awareness of your ego’s voice and stop it when it goes rogue or replace it with a positive, “You got this, friend!” alternative.
Positive Circles of People: Remove shallow, toxic, negative, self-serving people who don’t create meaning in your life. Yes, that’s it!
Replace Addictions: Seek pleasure for happiness and stay unhappy. Desire much, suffer much. Figure out what addictions you have and get help. Replace bad addictions with healthier ones. Stop seeking and start being full without the need for anything.
Healthy Hobbies: Find human connection through healthy hobbies and fun leisure. Body movement, tai chi, yoga, run clubs, bike groups, fitness communities, walking, hiking, pickleball, and trying the sport or craft you loved as a child. Do it and just be happy with the doing of it. Don’t seek happy feelings from hobbies; just do them fully.
Life and Meaning: Life and work. The Big Two always descend upon you. Try to think about life and work and meaning together. How do you treat everyone in your work and life as an end, not a means to an end? Every interaction can be full of presence and curiosity and learning if you allow it to be. There is no meaning and there is meaning in everything you do —how you choose to remember and live this moment, how you want to live and work and make meaning out of what happens to you in this experience.
Low Expectations: Have high standards for yourself and low expectations for others. This is a recipe for letting go and living a positive life.
Self-Care: This is a self-help industry cliche that actually takes reflection and tons of practice. If you can get the fundamentals of a healthy life down (sleeping consistently well, eating consistently well, exercising consistently well, having human connection consistently well), you’ll take care of yourself. My dad always said, “You can’t race a Lamborghini on a quarter tank of unleaded gas and an overheated engine.”
Live Your Values: Make a list of values you’ll review your day upon and ask yourself before you fall asleep: “Did I live today in honoring the most sacred parts of who I am?”
Letting Go: This might be the hardest thing to do in the world. Let go. Let go. Let go. Accepting what is or isn’t and remaining present in letting go regardless of what is happening is probably one of the best ways to stay positive. Who cares what that coworker thinks? Who cares what your partner did that annoyed you this morning? Who cares if your kid isn’t the smartest? Live by your values and let the rest go.
Self-awareness: I can’t emphasize how important yet hard to achieve self-awareness is. Being aware of the self you’ve been conditioned to believe is (but is it?) real is hard work. Figure out who you truly are and what truly matters by peeling back the layers of conditioning and enculturation you’ve never examined in yourself.
ABL = Always Be Learning: Reading helps you learn from the people who have lived and learned from the suffering of their lives years before you started to try and live yours.
Authenticity: To become your best self, you must truly be yourself. Smile and joke with friends and family and love this moment. Chortle. Laugh. Giggle. Bellow. Snigger. Cry. Boom. Sprint. Walk. Hold onto the laughter and authenticity in your life; it’s chicken soup for the soul.
Negative Self Talk: Are you a loser? No. You’re here, trying your best like everyone else. Then why do you talk to yourself like a loser? Stop belittling yourself. Stop allowing your past trauma and ego to run your mind’s thought machine. Take the reins and speak to that hurtful voice that wants to keep you small and tiny and in the corner of the world for no one to see.

Good luck out there,

Trevor Huffman

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This post was previously published on medium.com.

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