Little Mindset Hacks: Part 1

In today's episode I am going to share 7 little mindset hack habits that have the power to elevate your mindset, boost your mood and enhance your self-confidence. 

Just take it from me, a little thing like making your bed each morning or seeing every day as a new beginning can make a world of difference. 

So, get ready to learn about the ripple effect of these seemingly insignificant actions.

This episode is the 1st of a 2 episode series. So stay tune for the 2nd episode to learn the other 7 mindset hacks to improve your life.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Hey guys, welcome to another episode of the Mindset Focus Podcast. I'm your host, tony Tran. Today, I'm going to share with you little things that you can do every day to elevate your mindset. So every day, we go through life, going through our routine, and doing the same thing most of the time. But what if I tell you that you are able to tweak just a couple of things during your day that could elevate your mindset by quite a bit, and that will be the theme of today's podcast. Guys, now there are going to be 14 little things that I will be sharing with you, and that seems like a very big number, right? So what I'm going to do is I will be cutting this big episode into two little episodes so that it's easier to keep track of for you.

Speaker 1: 0:44

Today's episode will be the first of a two episode series on the little things that you can do to elevate your mindset. Now, these little things are going to have a variety of effects on you, and each has their own different benefits. It's either going to number one give you the satisfaction of completing a task, a sense of accomplishing something small during the day. So when you complete the task, you feel a sense of relief and happiness. Right, I certainly feel you know some way has been lifted off my shoulder. Number two is it's going to boost your mood, happiness, and hence you will feel better throughout the day, and that's going to make you more productive you know a more, more fun person to hang around with and essentially just going to improve your perspective on how you approach your day. Number three is going to strengthen and improve your health, physically or mentally, or hopefully both and lucky last number four is it's going to increase yourself confidence. All of these benefits will elevate your mindset so that you can go out there in your life and be a productivity machine, have more focus and have less stress. All of that sounds pretty good to me. Does it to you? If it does, let's go ahead and unpack the more.

Speaker 1: 2:02

So the first little thing that I want you guys to do is to make your bed. Guys, that's right. I bet 90% of you, listening to today's episode, haven't done your bed this morning. Okay, but how could something so simple and so quick have such a big impact on your date? Well, a former Navy SEAL, william McRaven, talked about the importance of making his bed when he was in the war zone. He said if you want to change the world, start off by making your bed. It was something that he could control in a very chaotic and disastrous environment where you know explosions are going off over here and shootings going off over there and you don't know what the enemies are.

Speaker 1: 2:53

Okay, for you guys who don't know what a Navy SEAL is, they are a special military force in the US who specializes in complex combat missions. Now one of the first things that they would do is to do their bed, even with their senior officers checking the quality of how they make the bed. The blanket had to be folded correctly and the pillow had to be in the center. The bed sheets had to be tucked nicely underneath the bed, because otherwise, if they can't even make their bed right, how are they going to run a complex SEAL mission correctly? So the point of this ridiculously high standard is that if you can do the little things right, you will be able to do the big things right. The little daily tasks will be the foundation for your bigger goals in your life and even though no one is watching you making your bed, like the Navy SEAL bed inspector, you will know you made your bed and you will take pride in the fact that you did it. So making your bed is such a simple task, guys. It takes you like 15 to 30 seconds to fold your blankets and tuck your sheets underneath and put your pillows into the center, and when you finish that, it's going to encourage you to keep accomplishing other tasks throughout your day. And look who knew something as simple and quick as making your bed could jumpstart a productive day for you.

Speaker 1: 4:31

Little thing number two is to consider each day as a new start. So too many of us go through life seeing Monday to Friday as all the same. Right, it's just the working week, so everything just happens the same on those days. You know we're approaching the weekend. That's what we're really looking for. You know Saturday and Sunday is our days off, our chance to relax, put our feet up with some Netflix, okay, well, one life hack to boost your confidence and satisfaction in your own life is to look at each day as a new start. Okay, see every day as an opportunity to do something incredible, instead of seeing Monday as the start of the working week and Saturday as the start of your two day weekend, two day rest, two day relaxation time. Okay, the successes and failures of yesterday are gone. Today is a new day and with a new day, there's an opportunity to be the best version of yourself. Each day offers you and I the chance to start afresh, for us to wipe off the disappointments of yesterday and start brand new Now.

Speaker 1: 5:38

I particularly like this quote and I want to share this quote with all of you. It's from JR RIM and it is tomorrow is not a promise, tomorrow is a second chance. I love that quote because the future is out of your control. It's not guaranteed that tomorrow will come, and if it does come, it is a second chance for you to take on that challenge, that chance for you to do the things that you wanted to do the day before. Okay, so, by considering each day as a new start, it can give you hope, and when someone has hope, they can be the strongest, most empowering and resilient person in the world. Okay, hope is a powerful force that someone can have. It will drive someone to do anything if they have the hope to do it all right. So, whether you are going through a difficult time, with a health set back, having hope can really help you to see the light at the end of the tunnel and bring you out of your darkest days right, or whether you are walking towards the goal of starting a business for yours. When multiple setbacks and disappointments come along, having hope can really help you to stay on track and not quit when the hard times come along. And the hard times will come along, okay. So consider each day as a new start and clean off your plates of disappointment. Nice and clean and start fresh.

Speaker 1: 7:17

Now the little thing. Number three is to exercise, and, in particular, exercise in the morning if you can. Okay. Exercise is good for you, no matter what time of the day you do it, but if you do it in the morning, there are more benefits than if you work out in the afternoon, okay. So those benefits include working out in the morning may actually help you burn more fat. So if a goal of yours is to lose a couple of pounds, then working out in the morning can help you with that, okay. Number two there will be less distractions, less notifications from phone. Other people are asleep, so they won't get the chance to send you messages or Instagram reels for you to be distracted by. So going to be 100% focused and concentrated on your exercise. Number three you have that mentality advantage of working out when other people are still asleep, you know, or, even worse, when they're still in the bed but they're awake on their phone. Right, it is that military mentality of you are working when the enemy is asleep. Not that these people are your enemy by any circumstances, but just know that you are getting an advantage of working out in the morning and you're out working them during this time.

Speaker 1: 8:39

Okay, number four your body gets working out by the sunlight. There's actually a couple of more benefits with exposing your body to the early hours of the sunlight. When you get a dose of bright lights in the morning, it kick starts your body's sleep and waking cycle, okay, and it keeps your circadian rhythm in balance. So it's going to tell your body that it is time to wake up, and this is going to increase your alertness and it's going to help you fall asleep at night as well, because your body knows when it's time to wake up and then, at the end of the day, it's time for your body to you know just to quiet down and relax and go to sleep. The sunlight also gives you a very important vitamin that your body needs, and that is vitamin D. Okay, this vitamin is important for your bone strength and for strong muscles, as well as giving you a boost in your energy levels. So try to go out there first thing in the morning and do some sort of exercise, whether that is taking your dog for a walk or doing a light run or doing some functional exercises at the park. Get your exercise done in the morning is a great way to boost your energy level for a great day ahead, you know, and it's going to help your body to wake up with the natural light of the sun as well.

Speaker 1: 10:03

So number four is try to drink a cup of water before you touch your coffee or, you know, drink a cup of water when you wake up first thing in the morning, when you sleep for eight hours right, hopefully, that's the number of hours that you guys are getting in your sleep on average, your body doesn't drink water, you know, because you're asleep. So it kind of makes sense to start your day off by drinking a cup of water when you wake up, just to replenish those eight hours that you were asleep and you weren't drinking. Okay, it's going to help to kickstart your digestion, it's going to help you stay hydrated and it's going to help you know, help keep your skin to look nice and fresh. We all know that. You know drinking water regularly throughout the day is important, right? So I always start off my day by drinking a cup of water before I eat my breakfast or have my tea or coffee. Okay, it's just what I've been doing for a couple of years now and, yeah, it's been pretty good. It makes me feel good about myself knowing that I have started my hydration straight away and it's like a little mental boost to kickstart my day. All right, it's like, well done to me for starting off well with a cup of water to start off my hydration.

Speaker 1: 11:18

Drinking water right when you wake up makes it easier to maintain healthy water hydration habits and it increases fluid intake throughout the day. Like, so that's one glass out of the way, you know, only seven more to go throughout the day. But to go back to the point of drinking a cup of water before your coffee, well, who here, listening to today's episode right now, has felt the urge to go to the toilet soon, really soon, after drinking a cup of coffee, right? Well, the reason is this did you know that caffeine, the chemical that gives you that coffee buzz, is also a natural diuretic. Okay, so that is. It increases the amount of water that your body eliminates or flushes out, okay, through going to the toilet. Hence you know why you feel the urge to need to pee quite soon. So drinking water before your coffee can actually assist with the amount of water that gets eliminated from your body. Okay, so that kind of makes sense, right? So little habit.

Speaker 1: 12:19

Number five is to change out of your pajamas into an outfit that you like or into your work clothings as soon as possible. Okay, so do you get stressed and flustered when things just aren't working out the way you want to? Okay, everything seems really chaotic and it's out of your control. Now, when we feel a lack of control in certain times, this can lead to stress and anxiety. So, for example, earlier this year, I went over to Japan.

Speaker 1: 12:56

Okay, everything over there was new to me. You know the language, the culture, the food, the environment, everything. Even my routine was not there, it was gone, like my exercise routine was gone. I didn't work anymore. You know, everything was new to me, right? So there were so many things that were out of my control, you know, like the traffic, the environment. You know the people around there as well, the public transport, you know, you name it.

Speaker 1: 13:24

Everything was out of control, out of my control over there, you know, and I was certainly more stressed over there, more than usual, because I was trying to adapt to this new environment, right, and what made me feel better was the things that I was able to control, which was not many, but as long as there were a few things that I was able to control that helped me to reduce my stress levels, okay, and one of those things was being able to choose what I was going to wear each day, right, so, like getting dressed in the morning and changing out of your pajamas into an outfit that you like or into your work clothing. This will help you to maintain a sense of control and this adds a bit of normality in your day. Okay, so you know, you can get dressed in the morning and tell your brain that it's time to enter the work mode. Okay, because it's kind of hard for you to feel productive in your pajamas, right, because they aren't simply associated with working productivity unless you work for the pajama industry, okay, and I think this problem has been, you know, well demonstrated within the past few years during COVID, right, working from home a lot more, and to those of you who are working from home or who did work from home, you probably know what I'm talking about right now. Okay, so a study from the Wilcock Institute of Medical Research, which is affiliated with the University of Sydney, found that during COVID, right, 60% of scientists they admitted to wearing pajamas at home during the lockdown, and with 14% of them saying that they did it during Zoom call meetings. Right Now, what was interesting was this group was also more likely to report worse than levels of mental health than those who dress normally each day. What I find even more fascinating is that Femrin so that's one of the researcher they said that these findings was consistent with evidence supporting blue pajama syndrome.

Speaker 1: 15:40

Now, blue pajama syndrome refers to those hospital gowns that the patients wear when they are in the hospital, right? So, anyway, this syndrome suggests that hospital patients who remained in their blue hospital gowns were assessed as being more depressed than those who changed into their ordinary clothing in the hospital while they were still a patient. Okay, and I find this really fascinating because I do see this to be quite true. At my work as a physio in the hospital, I see a lot of patients who adopt a I don't really want to help myself kind of attitude when they are in the blue hospital gown, as compared to those that wear their own clothing. Right, those that wore their own clothing, they were more proactive about their recovery and they will get out of bed, go for their walking, exercise and they want to get out of there. They want to get out of the hospital to go back to home, right? So, you know, changing into their own clothes, you know, get them one tick off their list that they can go home, it makes them feel that they are closer to reaching their goal of going home, being discharged from the hospital. Okay, now, I'm not saying that this applies to all the patients that wear the blue gowns in the hospital, but that's just what my six years of hospital experience has really shown me over the years.

Speaker 1: 17:16

Okay, so getting out of your pajamas and changing into an outfit that you like or into your work clothings, will get you that one step closer to being, you know, productive or put you in a better mood. Okay, because staying in your pajamas will it's going to associate with, you know, relaxing, sleeping, you know, chilling out and sometimes your brain subconsciously, it's going to do that, it's going to relax, it's going to watch Netflix, you know, and you know that's something that you might be losing time or productivity over. Okay, so number six is to write down your goal onto a piece of paper or onto your phone. Right, and with that, I want you guys to write down anything that comes to you as of that moment. Okay, so have you ever had a moment where suddenly something creative or something really helpful just pops up into your mind and then you know, throughout the day you didn't write it down or you didn't record it down. You know, and then so, throughout the day, you just, you know, keep going with your day, and then, at the end of the day, you think back to yourself oh, what was that thought that I had earlier in the day? And then you just simply can't remember it right, because you did so many things, you had so many thoughts that came to your mind. After that, you know that little creative moment that you had it just flushed out of your brain. It's just not there anymore. Okay, and that's a waste. That's an opportunity for you to. You know, I don't know. Start something you know, productive, useful, but it's gone because you didn't write it down right, so use every new day to tick off a little goal of yours, okay, whether it is from those cinnamon donuts into the beans to stay on track of your diet, or going to work with a feel-good attitude. You know, the more things you tick off your to-do list, the better you will feel. Okay, but it's important to write it down, or at least type it into your phone, so that you don't forget it. Okay, and another thing is that you have a visual reminder now, a visual reminder of what you want to do, so that you don't, you know, try to remember it and then you forget it later during the day.

Speaker 1: 19:32

Right Now, I have this really bad habit of trying to remember what I need to do throughout my day without writing it down into like a diary or something right, and then you know, as the day goes on, you do more things, you know, you talk to people, things come into your mind, you know, unexpected things come along and stuff like that, you know, and then I go huh At the end of the day, what was that thing that I wanted to do earlier? And I just simply can't remember. Okay, and the harder that I try to remember it, the less and less likely. I am going to remember it. So, by writing down your goals, you not only are you, you know, telling yourself or visually reminding yourself of what you want to complete and do, but if you are specific with those goals that you write down, it's really strongly associated with the more success that you will obtain from those goals. Okay, and people who are more likely to describe or picture their goals okay, with more details 1.2 to 1.4 times more likely to complete their goals successfully. Now, that's pretty good.

Speaker 1: 20:50

From just writing your goals down onto a piece of paper or typing it into your phone. Okay, it's very minimal. It's like 5, 10 seconds max, right, so, yeah, so write down your goals, be specific with them and when those moments of genius or creativity comes along, make sure you grab out your phone and type it in, because if you forget, if you go throughout your day without typing it in, you will most likely forget it, and that's an opportunity that might be missed. Okay, and I don't want you to miss that opportunity. I don't know, maybe it's only me that feels this way. Like, have you, anyone else listening to this episode? Have you ever had that moment where you know that has happened to you, and then you just go oh damn it, and you totally forgot about that moment that you've had. I don't know, let me know, maybe I'm just crazy, I don't know.

Speaker 1: 21:49

Okay, so the next little thing you know that I'm gonna talk about links up really nicely with the previous one that I was talking about, and that is to grab yourself a daily diary to plan out your day or even your week. Guys, we only have a limited number of time and energy that we can use throughout the day. Okay, so this little habit is going to save you both the time and the energy. Your time and energy are valuable resources that can't be taken back. Once they are used, they are gone. So your yesterday has been used up. Your yesterday cannot be taken back. Okay, and that's the same with your time and your energy. Therefore, it's important to use them in tasks that are worthwhile, like important projects or quality time with your friends and families.

Speaker 1: 22:41

Okay, it is not worthwhile to spend it on trying to remember what you wanted to do at 10 am today. Right, it's just not. That is something I would call unnecessary spending. Not only will you waste your time and energy trying to record that, but most of the time you won't even remember it anyway. Look, I'm certainly one to struggle with that.

Speaker 1: 23:03

I said I've told you guys earlier I go, oh, my diary, I love my diary guys, and I carry it with me everywhere I go into work, when I'm on holiday and even on day trips as well, with my friends and family, right? I love writing down and seeing what I need to do, or even writing down on a sticky note listing down the things I need to buy when I go shopping. Okay, it just makes it so much easier. I have something that I can look at. I don't really have to spend my mental energy trying to remember what I needed to buy. Okay, yeah, it's just gonna save you so much time and effort into rethinking of what you need to do, right?

Speaker 1: 23:43

Like I said, your time and energy is limited and you only have so much that you can use within one day. So, instead of wasting them on trying to think of what you need to do this afternoon, write it down. Write it down in your diary and that's going to save you the trouble of trying to remember it. Okay, and it also works as a visual reminder for you to do that task right. So, for me, whenever I see it, I go, ah-ha, so that's what I need to do today, and I just go out there and I complete the task, right? Yeah, so it's that easy. Just write down your goals into your diary, okay, it's just gonna make your life so much easier and it's going to allow you to spend your mental energy elsewhere, okay, whether that is having good time with your friends or families doing that side business of yours, or saving your mental energy for that important meeting at work tomorrow, right, whatever it is, you're gonna have more energy to do.

Speaker 1: 24:38

What's more important than trying to remember these little things that you need to do throughout the day, right? So go and do yourself a favor, guys. Grab yourself a daily diary and spend at least five minutes every day to plan out what you want to do and when you want to do them. I like to plan out my day early in the morning, okay, when I wake up, just so that I have an idea of what my day kinda looks like.

Speaker 1: 25:01

Roughly, but obviously things come along and plans changes, so it's not set in stone for what I'm going to do throughout the day, but as long as I have a fair idea of what I'm going to do, then it's going to save me a lot of energy later on down the track during the day trying to figure it out. So, guys, there you have it. Those are the first seven little mindset hacks that you can do to improve yourself on the daily. Okay, now, this is the first part of a two-part series that I said earlier, so stay tuned for the release of the next episode to find out the other seven little mindset hacks. So until then, take care of yourselves, and thank you so much for tuning in today. Your support means a lot to me and I really appreciate you for taking the time to listen today. Take care, guys.