Wellness Tip:
Don’t Sleep With Your Phone
Over 70% of people sleep with or next to their smartphones, according to surveys. Are you one of them?
If so, it’s time to reconsider. Here are some reasons to keep your phone off, on airplane mode, or across the other side of the room while you sleep:
- Blue light suppresses melatonin, preventing you from having a good, deep sleep.
- Checking your phone (even just the awareness of it being there) stimulates your brain, keeping it active and awake.
- Some research suggests radiofrequency radiation from phones also impacts sleep.
Ok, we get it: your phone does double duty as your flashlight and alarm clock. But hey, you can pick up both of those things at your local dollar store! Try having a tech-free night tonight, and see how much better you feel in the morning.
Productivity Tip:
Avoid The Paradox Of Choice
Options. We want more of them, yet the more we have, the harder it is to make a decision. Welcome to the paradox of choice.
Getting overwhelmed by too many options is super common in modern life (hello, shopping on Amazon!).
Every day, we have an abundance of choices to make about our relationships, careers, health, and more. So many choices can be paralyzing. We end up wasting time or, worse, making no decision at all, because it’s simply too mentally taxing.
So how do we overcome it?
According to The Decision Lab:
- Take time to just browse. That way you can learn about your options first, without the pressure to make a decision.
- Make your choice final. If you don’t give yourself the option to change your mind, you’re more likely to accept and be happy with your choice.
- Keep a gratitude journal. Gratitude prevents us from obsessing over bad choices, encouraging us to focus on the positives instead. Using your Panda Planner to jot down what you’re thankful for is a great way to cultivate a mindset of gratitude.
Ready to make decisions faster and feel better about your choices? Give the tips a try.
Routine Breakdown
Tony Suppattranont, Founder of Thann
Tony Suppattranont, founder of wellness brand Thann, is a fan of exercise, gardening, and nighttime meditation. For his daily routine, he:
- Starts his day with physical activity. “I’ve been exercising four times a week with a personal trainer for the past 20 years, but with the current measures in place, I work out at home instead.”
- Eats a healthy breakfast. “I try to eat fruits and vegetables in the seven shades of the rainbow daily.”
- Starts work. Suppattranont says that time management is key to a good work-life balance: “I feel that we don’t necessarily have to put in long hours if we know exactly what needs to be done, and to do that, we need to identify our ikigai.”
Why it works:
- There’s no doubt that daily exercise is good. Even more importantly is keeping up the habit despite our circumstances (and gym access) changing.
- Yes, ‘eating the rainbow’ has science-backed benefits. (And no, a bag of M&Ms doesn’t count.)
- Research shows that when we pursue what gives us meaning in life, we’re happier and healthier. In other words, we need to find our ikigai.
Have you heard of ikigai? Suppattranont describes it as “the Japanese concept for doing what you are good at, what you love and what the world will pay you to do.” Another way to put it is that your ikigai is your purpose in life; the thing that makes living worthwhile.
It’s a great concept to explore (and definitely worth finding out what your own ikigai is!). Read more about it here or watch this TED talk for a place to start.
