It’s easier said than done to wake up in the morning feeling ready to face the world and all the obstacles it throws at you. Dodge all-time lows and suffer near misses with ultimate breakout points. Learn to manage your emotions and lay your cards on the table. It’s much easier to wake up in the morning facing yourself in the mirror and realize you’re stuck, you’re stuck in a place you don’t want to be; whether mentally, physically or spiritually. The hardest part of all of this is allowing yourself to get unstuck and start the movement of change. No matter where you are or what stage of life you’re at, you can always level up and become a better version of yourself—here’s how.
Navigate your situation
You can’t improve your life if you don’t know where to start. Ultimately, you are the only person who can determine what upgrading means to you. This article is a guide to what the upgrade itself might look like. Everyone interprets it differently, what is written black on white and read between these lines may be interpreted differently by each person reading this. Life stages and situations differ from person to person. The need to take it to the next level may be caused by an upheaval in events in your life, or perhaps you feel like you are in a rut or cycle that you want to break from. Go inside your mind for a minute and figure out what prompted you to initiate the next level feeling and what aspects you want to work on.
Do you want to become a happier version of yourself? Someone who is more satisfied with their daily habits, satisfied with themselves. “Leveling up” is essentially an incentive to do things that improve our mind, body, and soul. Pushing ourselves to evolve and create a better, positive and happier version of ourselves.
Filter what you hear
A big part of upgrading is managing what you feed your hearing brain. Stop wasting hours on YouTube or Netflix and start replacing them with podcasts, documentaries, Ted Talks and, above all, positive music. Create playlists of all the songs that make you want to get up, dance, and push while you get ready for your day or cook a meal. I’m currently obsessed with listening to podcasts, a few I’m enjoying right now are Emma Chamberlain’s Everything’s Alright, Girls with Goals and Rise & Conquer. Putting them in the background or listening to them on a walk allows me to step away from reality for a moment and gain knowledge and a change of perspective on a variety of topics. Make it a goal for yourself, try listening to a podcast daily or weekly. Ideal topics to take to the next level include self-love, self-improvement, motivation, processing emotions, goal setting, and presence.
Spend time moving your body
Leveling up doesn’t mean losing weight unless it’s a personal goal you’d like to achieve during this ‘leveling up period’. Any type of exercise where you move your body with or without the intention of losing weight is a good starting point for becoming better. Exercise releases endorphins, which improves mood. Hit the gym after work, start your morning with a sunrise run or walk… try yoga or Pilates. Whatever type of exercise you enjoy the most, pursue it as often as possible and try to include it in your daily routine. Make it enjoyable by listening to music or a podcast, or maybe you prefer silence to reflect. If you’re a walker, runner, or jogger, try new routes and grab a post-workout smoothie or coffee. I recently loved getting up early in the morning and taking long walks with my dog. stop occasionally and have a coffee on my way home.
Elevate your spirituality
Look, I’m going to be honest here and say that I don’t fully know spirituality. I haven’t dived into it yet but like everyone else, I’m learning! I think it’s important to connect to inner peace, and that’s an appreciation I have for those who practice it and can do it frequently. I find mediation to be the best way to do it for me, but it may look completely different for everyone. A few moments of deep breathing, a pause in your day to journal and think about gratitude, or even something like a walk on the beach can be a few ways to connect spiritually. Think about what spirituality means to you and how you think you can fit it into your life, start with a guided meditation if you can’t rack your brains for ideas!
Detox and Disconnect
Disconnecting from social media and detoxing from all negativity can improve your state of mind in a heartbeat. We’re so used to endless scrolling, unconsciously seeing triggering and harmful content, and it’s awful for our headspace. Put the phone down and detox a bit, limit your phone or social media use. As hard as it may be…you’ll feel better. Think about what is draining you or affecting you negatively, walk away from that. Unfollow, delete everything or anyone who does not positively impact you.
inquire
Mental toughness is just as vital as physical toughness, and it’s always a good idea to keep educating yourself about the topics you feel are important. Switch from reading celebrity dramas to reading current affairs and political issues. Learn about what’s happening in the world and stay on top of current world affairs. Take a trip to the bookstore and stock up on self-guided books, books that fuel you. Pick up a book you wouldn’t usually like, you’ll find that you’ll more than likely enjoy it and learn something useful from it. Authors like Sarah Knight and Gill Hasson are great for self-awareness and self-improvement. Leveling up means you’re continually working on yourself, and educating yourself is a great way to level up mentally. Try to set aside time in your day to read a little, whether it’s during your free time, before bed, or during a meal.
“Upgrade; increase or improve something. We all want to improve our lives and make our days brighter. How about stopping to think about what it would be like to improve ourselves and put our thoughts into action. Free yourself, get out of the cycle and make tomorrow count.
