15 Daily Self-Care Habits That Will Inspire Joy & Happiness In Your Life

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links and I may receive a commission if you purchase through them.

Today’s post is all about self-care. No matter which occupation you’re in or if you’re still in school, our lives are so busy and full of chaos in this day and age that a lot of times we put ourselves on the back burner and don’t properly take care of ourselves.

Think about it for a second.

Do you put your dog’s needs first before you? Your kids? Your significant other? Your business if you’re an entrepreneur? Your job?

No matter who you place first before you, it’s essential to prioritize taking care of your mind and body because your physical and mental health are both one of the most important assets you have.

Without them, you can’t even care for yourself or your loved ones.

15 Self-Care Habits For A Happy & Healthy Life

Now, when you think of self-care habits, what comes to mind first to you?

I’m not just talking about taking a bubble bath or watching a movie with a tub of ice cream in hand when you’re feeling down or need to relax and unwind after a long, stressful day.

Instead, I’m talking about smaller, more subtle self-care practices that you can incorporate into your daily life that can make a huge, positive impact on your life and how you feel.

By putting more time and effort into learning how to take better care of yourself, you’ll feel happier, reset your anxiety and stress levels, recharge, and be as productive as possible.

Most importantly of all, your life will change for the better.

Healthy Habits For The Mind

Let’s first start off with better daily self care habits to improve your mental health.

1. Write In A Daily Journal

If you need to release pent-up emotion or anger built up within you or you’re seeking clarity from a confusing or unhappy situation, writing all of your thoughts down can be magical and therapeutic.

I recommend checking out my 30-Day Self-Care Habits Journal And Workbook.

This journal will help you create a healthier and happier life you love by improving your mental, physical, and spiritual health in just 30 days.

Inside this 52-page self-care journal and workbook, you’ll get printable self care worksheets that include:

• Journal prompts and self-affirmations to help you work through past traumas, mental roadblocks, and hurts
• A roadmap to setting up boundaries so you have healthier friendships and relationships
• Calendars to help guide you to achieve your exercise, healthy eating, hygiene, and sleep goals
• Tips on how to create a healthy and clear space at home to facilitate a clear mind
• A lined journal page (print as many times as you’d like)

2. Take Time Off

Both hustling and working hard to reach your goals are a must to get ahead.

However, if you’re constantly burnt out, tired, and feel like you have no motivation and your passion now is turning into a dreadful time, it’s a signal that it’s time for you to take some time off.

Taking time off to recharge is not only great to help you feel more physically refreshed but it can also help transform your mindset so that you feel motivated and excited to hit the ground running again.

If taking time off means taking a multiple-week-long trip to travel the world or just an afternoon off to spend time with family, your pets, or friends, do what feels right for you.

3. Read Self-Help Books

Our productivity and the way we look at the world all starts from within.

We all can gain a little something from a positive self-help book from time to time and this is especially true if you’re going through a tough time in life and need some guidance or perspective on life.

Reading self-help books is a great way to motivate you, bring some positivity into your life, and lift your spirits when you’re lost or down.

If you’re looking to get into positive self-help books and you’re not sure where to start, I recommend giving The Happiness Project a try.

Don’t forget to also check out my post on 25 self-improvement books you should read this year for personal growth.

4. See The Positive Side Of Things

Our world is a negative place nowadays and constantly surrounding ourselves with it can be a huge damper on your mood and how you see the world.

Train your mind to see the positive side of things, that the cup is not half empty but half full, and focus on the good instead of the bad.

One way you can help yourself see things more positively is by practicing daily gratitude affirmations.

If you learn to live with an attitude of gratitude, you’ll be much happier and attract positivity into your life.

If you need help with more positive thinking, check out my 101 Days Of Gratitude Journal.

This 55-page journal includes guided journal prompts that will inspire happiness, balance, and joy in your life. As you practice this new habit over the next few months, you will start to cultivate a mindset that will promote more positive thinking.

This journal is a perfect addition to your morning routine to start the day off on a positive note or even to your night routine right before bed to reflect on all of the good things that happened during the day.

Dealing with a lot of negativity in your life? Read my post on things you should do to remove negativity from your life.

5. Find Some Quiet Time

Sometimes our lives are so busy that we don’t get any quiet time to ourselves to recharge with no distractions.

Making sure you’re taking care of yourself will enhance the quality of your life, while neglecting yourself will do the opposite.

A great time you can do this, especially when your home is probably the most quiet and calm, is right in the morning.

Check out my Transform Your Mornings Workbook that will help you put yourself first as you create a calm and stress-free morning routine that improves your well-being and brings you positivity.

Whether you draw a nice hot bubble bath, sit down to paint, enjoy your cup of coffee right in the mornings while the sun comes up, or fill out a therapeutic adulting coloring book (that’s right – coloring books aren’t just for kids), take some time out of the day every day (say for an hour or so) to just make it all about you.

You can also subscribe to a variety of unique wellness and self-care boxes that are designed to help you practice better self-care during your downtime. The best thing is that they ship right to your door.

6. Immerse Yourself In Nature

Sometimes all we need to do to reset our minds and energy is to surround ourselves with nature.

Take a hike or go biking in a conservation area or ravine if you’re near one and take in the sights and sounds of nature.

Can’t spend time outside? Bring nature to you by adding some calming plants to your home.

These plants can help boost your mood and decrease symptoms of depression and anxiety.

7. Positive Self-Talk

Often times, you are your own worst critic. That little voice at the back of your head can get rather nasty. 

You might notice that you unintentionally talk down to yourself by telling yourself you can’t do something.

Maybe you say negative things to yourself that you would never say to anyone else if they were you or you always criticize minuscule details about yourself that other people don’t even notice.

Stop feeding yourself negativity because it isn’t serving you.

Instead, put yourself in a positive mindset and train yourself to have greater self-esteem and more confidence by repeating positive statements about yourself in front of the mirror every morning.

Even if you don’t believe these statements at first, eventually you’ll start to believe them.

8. Meditate

Meditation is such a great way to refocus your thoughts and reset your mind.

Find a designated quiet and calm space in your home that is free from clutter and where you can center all your energy into focusing on your thoughts.

Close your eyes and take some time to focus on breathing deeply.

A great app to help you start getting into the habit of meditating is Headspace. Try Headspace for free for 14 days and see if it helps you relax and reset.

9. Write Down Positive Compliments From Others

Do you have those days where you feel down, unmotivated, or just plain awful about yourself?

I know we girls all have those days from time to time when we feel insecure or unworthy.

For those days when you don’t feel great about yourself, start a habit where every time you get a positive compliment from someone, write it down in a notebook.

Whenever you start experiencing one of those days where you’re down, take a look at that list of positive compliments that you’ve accumulated.

Those are genuine compliments that other people have given you and are a great reminder on days when you need a pick-me-up that you’re awesome and worthy.

10. Hang Out With Positive People

We are who we surround ourselves with so take some time to figure out who is truly worthy of your time.

Find people to spend time with who inspire you to be the best version of yourself and are just positive people overall.

If you don’t feel the positive energy from them or you always feel down and unhappy when they’re around, it might be beneficial to you to reduce the amount of time you spend with them and find other people who are more like-minded.

Some people are toxic and having them in your life can be detrimental to your mental health. Check out my post on 6 ways to let go of toxic relationships and friendships.

Self-Care Habits For The Body

It’s not enough to take care of your mental health and this self-care list isn’t complete without talking about healthy habits for the body. Here are 5 more habits to add to your daily routine for self care.

1. Get Enough Sun

When I say get enough sun, I’m not telling you to lay out in the sun and start tanning.

What I mean is that you should be getting enough exposure to the sun to get your body’s daily dose of much-needed vitamin D.

If you live in a cold climate where winter is pretty much present most of the year, you can get a light therapy lamp to lift your mood and take vitamin D supplements if you feel like you’re not getting enough sun.

Check out my post on further tips to beat the Winter Blues.

2. Eat Healthy & Clean

A healthy mind and body starts with drinking enough water as well as eating healthy and clean.

A lot of times, we eat fast food frequently because it’s so convenient and cheap. But eating out all the time can make you feel bloated, gain weight, be less productive, and so much more.

Instead, try eating more at home by planning out your meals in advance.

It’s possible to save money on groceries while making great food at home and it’s great that you can control exactly which ingredients go into your food.
 

If you’re not great in the kitchen or just the thought of having to plan your meals stresses you out, I recommend checking out the Eat At Home Meal Plans if you’re looking to create cheap but healthy meals.

This meal plan membership includes access to ALL 4 of the following separate meal plans. The great part is you can mix and match depending on your needs and tastes.

1. Traditional – This plan is family-friendly and includes a variety of meats and veggies, and the occasional meatless meal.

2. Whole Food Plant Based – This plan places more emphasis on natural foods including vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. No meats, cheese, milk, fish, or eggs.

3. Slow Cooker/Instant Pot – This plan provides recipes that you can cook in your slow cooker and includes many Instant Pot recipes as well. (Bonus: It includes 1 week of Slow Cooker Freezer meals that are ready to eat in an hour)

4. No Flour, No Sugar – This plan includes easy-to-prepare meals made from veggies and protein from whole foods with no flour or artificial sugars added.

Other great advantages of the Eat At Home Meal Plans include:

• Meal plans provided at the beginning of the month so you’ll have time to plan and minimize shopping trips
• 15-minute meals for super busy nights
• Color-coded lists so you can swap out ingredients or whole meals when needed
• Printable recipes for easy cooking
• Printable menus which are perfect to hang on your fridge or near your calendar for easy viewing

These will help you save time so you don’t have to think long and hard about what to make at home and it’ll keep you focused on staying healthy.

Definitely check it out.

3. Get Enough Exercise

Get that dopamine into your system.

Getting enough exercise every week is so important to keep your body fit as well as your mind.

This is even more important if you’re constantly stressed because you’re juggling a stressful 9-5 desk job, kids, a family, chores, and more.

Even if you don’t have time to go to the gym, try to get up during your breaks or at lunch and walk 10,000 steps a day.

Giving yourself a spurt of awesome endorphins every day will put you in a better mood and you’ll feel happier, healthier, and more productive.

Don’t want to spend a lot of money on working out? Check out my post on 5 fun ways to get fit on a budget.

4. Get High-Quality Sleep

Getting enough high-quality sleep is beneficial to both the body and mind, even if you might just dismiss it as something that happens every night.

However, getting high-quality sleep isn’t always a given.

Do you ever feel like you wake up groggy? Or no matter how many hours you sleep, you still feel tired?

High-quality sleep isn’t always easy to achieve especially if you’re stressed or anxious and this can in turn change how you act and feel throughout the day.

Strive to get better sleep with my 14 easy tips and use a Sleep Journal to track what works and what doesn’t for you. You’ll feel more productive and energized to take on the day.

5. Focus On Your Posture

Our society nowadays is so technologically driven that we’re constantly hunched like turtles over our laptops and computers as well as straining our necks to look down at our cell phones.

Imagine sitting down sedentarily like that for hours a day (especially if you work at a 9 to 5 desk job) and you can probably picture how much it can wreak havoc on our bodies.

Eventually, your body will get used to having bad posture unless you consciously change the way you sit and position your body.

Making sure that you always focus on your posture and remember to stretch is so important.

More Healthy Mind And Body Tips

• How To Sleep Earlier When You’re A Total Night Owl
• 15 Ways To Easily Boost Your Mood Right Now
• How To Stay Healthy And Sane When You Work At A Desk Job
• 8 Self-Care Activities To De-Stress After A Stressful Day
• 7 Ways To Remove Negativity From Your Life
• How To Start A Morning Routine To Reach Your Wellness Goals
• 6 Ways To Start The Week Off Right Every Sunday
• How To Practice Hygge

What are some good self care habits that you regularly incorporate into your daily life? Let me know in the comments below!