In this BIT: A guide on how to romanticize your life, fall in love with life, and feel like the main character! Plus, why romanticizing life can boost happiness.
Sometimes our life can feel mundane, uneventful, and a bit boring. Unlike the lives of our favourite movie characters or influencers online. The truth is, we don’t need a fuller life, our life is full enough as is! The key lies in the act of noticing good things every day and making intentional routines to enjoy each day. Online, this process has been coined “romanticization,” which can feel a little vague. How can we actually start to “romanticize” our life, and find more happiness in what we already have?
Romanticization, as a definition, refers to consciously shifting our perception to find and look for joy, beauty, and significance in the everyday moments. Neuroscience has shown that what we perceive can shape our reality! This means that by looking for the small, good things around us, these little things will become more visible to us and eventually stand out more than the negative. The best part? Romanticizing life can be as easy as lighting a candle or reading for a few minutes before bed. It helps us appreciate the life we already have, rather than being unhappy about what we don’t have.
Training our brains to look for the good isn’t just a concept from social media, it’s neuroscience, called neuroplasticity. Given the opportunity, our brains can change and grow! Looking for the small, good things is actually a skill that we can cultivate! When we start to change the way we think, through a mindset shift or simply learning something new, our brain’s physical structure can alter. This is because of the formation of new neural pathways or the strengthening of existing ones. The more we begin to focus on these small routines, the more new pathways we can build. The key to achieving this? Repetition. Romanticizing our life and rebuilding our brain to focus on the small good things doesn’t have to be hard! Try some of these easy strategies and hacks:
Notice comparing thoughts: Who hasn’t compared their life to a friend or someone online!? When these thoughts occur, take a step back to refocus and appreciate what you already have. Hence, reducing the feelings of inadequacy and replacing them with gratitude.
Make daily rituals: Find small activities that can boost your mood daily. These can be as simple as noticing and enjoying the beautiful colours of a sunset or sunrise. A ritual can make a big impact, elevating a normal and mundane moment into something special.
Make a playlist for specific moments: Making a playlist that resonates with a specific ritual or activity makes the action feel much more “romantic.” Walking to school or work with uplifting music, making us feel like we’re being the main character in a movie, helps that action feel more enjoyable.
Take your time! We rush ourselves a lot, even during activities that don’t need to be rushed. If we calm ourselves and slow down, a task can become more pleasant.
Overall, romanticizing our lives is such a powerful way to embrace what we already have! By changing our focus to enjoy the small moments, we can fully embrace our lives, begin to fall in love with life, and train our brain to feel just a little bit happier! We hope that this BIT helps you start to romanticize your life!
For more happiness check out our Mood Boost page.
Featuring quick videos created for teens by teens.
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Explore this simple guide on how to feel like you’re being the main character and fall in love with your life.
