23 Tiny Practices To Improve Your Life In 2023
Who wants to feel overwhelmed and like they can’t handle life? No one!
Instead of overhauling your life completely (who has time or energy for that?) or worse, giving up and living in constant chaos, do this instead.
Adopt one (or all) of these 23 Tiny Practices that can make a difference in your day-to-day life. Some you only do once a year, others you can do every day. They will help you maintain your space and the flow of things coming at you, so you have the time and energy to tackle the bigger, more important things in your life.
1. Make Your Bed
Truth is we’ve fallen off the habit of making our bed every morning, and I want to get back to it in 2023.
Besides making your bedroom more put together, the act of making your bed starts your day with a win. It’s also proof that you’re the type of person that keeps their promises to themselves.
Making your bed signals to your brain that you’re someone that cares about their space, and that mental shift will eventually spill to other areas of your home. Plus, I personally find it feels much better to get in bed at night in sheets that are not all crumpled.
2. Set a Donation Bin
This is a one and done!
It’s easier to declutter if you have a designated space to put your discarded items. Think of it as a holding place until you take a trip to the charity shops or the Eco Station.
You simply need some sort of container (bag, box, hamper, etc.) in an easy to access location (bottom of a closet, spare room, garage, etc.).
Every time you come upon an item that no longer serves you, bring it to your Donation Bin (and see Tiny Practice #23 to close that loop).
3. Adopt a 5 Minute Tidy Session Habit
Decluttering and organizing are only the first steps. Staying organized is the goal.
My most effective tool to keep the house from becoming a mess is a 5-10 minute tidy session before going to bed.
What it can look like, but make it your own: fold blankets, fluff throw pillows, store remotes, bring dishes to the dishwasher or pile near the sink (to be washed the next day), wipe counters (I really hate starting the day with dirty counters), check that the dog has fresh water, plug-in electronics to charge, check that the doors are locked, turn off the lights and get in bed with a good book.
This takes only a few minutes and it makes the next day SO much better.
It’s so simple, it almost feels like magic!
4. Write Your Top 3 Daily
If you want to get things done, but have a never-ending To-Do List, write down your 3 most important tasks to be completed each day, no matter what.
Write no more than 3 and some days, depending on the tasks and how much you already have scheduled, it might be less.
This will help you focus on the most important stuff. Once those are done, you can decide to tackle something else.
5. Deal with Junk Mail
Discard your junk mail right when you come in the door, don’t let it pile up.
Seriously it takes less than 2 minutes to scan your mail and recycle the junk from the good stuff you should keep for taking action later.
Want a jumpstart on junk mail? Add a “No Flyers“ or “ No Junk Mail“ to your mailbox.
6. Stop the Flow
Maintaining your space will be hard if you don’t stop the flow of items coming into your home.
You can adopt a “One In One Out“ house rule. When you buy an item, specifically if it’s to replace one you no longer love or use, make sure you discard the old item in your donation bin (see Tiny Practice #1). See also numbers 14 and 17 for more tips.
7. Let Go of Unfinished Projects
Old hobbies, unfinished DIYs, books we've read halfway through, they clutter our space.
Not only that, but they often make us feel guilty that we’re still not engaging with them.
Time to be real with ourselves and let go of Fantasy Self Projects.
8. Get Rid of Expired Food
Before I go grocery shopping, I usually have a look through my fridge to see if there are things that need to be thrown out: leftovers we won’t eat, produce not fit for consumption, etc. I hate wasting food, so we usually buy only what we need and use and rarely throw stuff away, but it happens.
Twice a year (you can add a reminder to your phone for that), I also empty the fridge, freezer and pantry and wipe them down. I take this opportunity to check Best Before Dates (especially on condiments).
9. Clean Your Medicine Cabinet
Medications also have expiry dates.
Once a year, check your pharmacy and set aside expired medicine.
DO NOT throw these in the garbage or toilet. Bring them to your pharmacy so they can dispose of them properly.
10. Delete Photos & Screenshots
Digital clutter is a thing that keeps on growing and it has repercussions on the environment (data needs energy to be stored).
Once a week I check my photos and delete screenshots and photos I don’t need anymore. Because I do this often, the task is easy and only takes a couple minutes.
I also sort photos, if need be, into albums I’ve created on my phone.
11. Delete Apps
Someone recommends an app, you download it and realise you need to set up an account to use it. You don’t have time right at the moment (or don’t feel like giving your information to yet another app), so you tell yourself you’ll deal with it later, and proceed to never open that app again! Just me?
It’s easy enough to reinstall an app later if you need to. So delete all the ones you are not using.
12. Clean Your Desktop & Empty The Trash
If you like having all your documents on your desktop and that works for you, go right ahead.
For me, that creates a lot of anxiety, so I keep my desktop pretty minimal. You could have a nice image on the background for sure (I have my Vision Board), and having a clear desktop could be helpful when you want to focus on your work.
And if you use a Mac, sort your downloads and empty the trash regularly. Your computer will be happier.
13. Create a Packing List
Oooh, I love a good packing list. Next time you go on a trip, write down (or list on your phone) the contents of your suitcase, where you are going (destination, weather, duration, type of travel: work, vacation, family visit) and keep it with you during your trip.
If you realise that an item is missing and you have to go buy it while on your trip, add it to your list. You can also track how many times you wear or use each item you brought.
Once back, you can easily see if you over packed or not.
Do this exercise a couple of times (keep your lists) and you’ll have yourself lists that work for you and packing will be SO easy.
I also have a few packing lists if you need help to start this process.
14. Unsubscribe From Email Lists
I realised recently that there are some newsletters I receive, that I like the idea of, but almost never click on the links included, purchase from the person or get any real value I can apply to my current life.
Doesn’t mean the content is not good, it’s just not for me, or not relevant at the moment.
So instead of having to delete these, or worse, let them clutter your inbox, think about unsubscribing.
And if you’re trying to curb your spending, definitely consider unsubscribing from brand mailing lists.
15. Detox Your Social Media
Once or twice a year, I like to go through my social media and unfollow people and accounts that don’t inspire me anymore.
Life is short and we already spend so much time on our devices; there is no need to see stuff we don’t genuinely care about.
16. Brain Dump Often
When my mind gets all jumbled up and I feel overwhelmed, I like to do a Brain Dump. Nothing fancy, just a piece of paper and a pen and off I go.
Write down all the things floating around in your head. You can also do this on your computer or phone if that suits you better.
After that if you want to sort it all out, you can check this post here.
17. Say No
This one goes well with Tiny Practice #6.
Friend, you are allowed to say NO!
No to free stuff you don’t want or need.
No to demands you don’t have time for.
No to invitations you don’t want to attend.
There are ways to be a good polite person and still say no. But it takes practice 😉, so start today!
18. Check on Your Money
Most people don’t like to talk, or even think, about money. But unless you are aware of your situation, you will never be able to get ahead.
Make a point of checking your accounts regularly. Even if you don’t keep a budget, looking at your spending habits is eye opening.
You might see patterns you’d like to change or extra spending you’d like to plan for or avoid in the future.
Be brave, check on your money!
19. Use What You Already Have
The best thing you can do for the environment is to use what you already have.
Want to switch items for Zero-Waste ones? That’s great! But use what you already have first. When it’s time to refill, you can then buy that Zero-Waste item.
20. Do One Thing at a Time
Multitasking is a myth!
What you’re actually doing is rapidly switching from one thing to the other.
Although that might be ok for a short period, like when you have a big deadline coming up, habitually multitasking is not great for your brain and it won’t make you more productive, quite the opposite actually.
Instead, try doing one thing at a time and see how that feels. Once you’re done, tackle another thing.
21. Use a Timer
When I don’t really feel like doing something, I force myself to do it for 5 minutes and I use a timer. Oftentimes, when the 5 minutes is done, I’m in the flow and can keep going.
Using a timer can also be fun with kids, so tidying becomes like a game of who will get the most things put away in the amount of time allotted (you might even think of a reward that they like - 5 more minutes of screen time for example).
In the place of a timer (but it does the same trick), I often listen to a podcast episode. It has a specific time and it’s distracting me from the fact that I really don’t want to be cleaning the bathroom, while I’m still doing it.
Again, it’s a little bit like a magic trick!
22. Start Small, But Start
I’m super guilty of putting things off because they feel too big. But that keeps me from accomplishing some of my goals.
So instead, this year, I’m trying to focus on small actionable steps. Hence this list of 23 Tiny Practices!
For you that could look like :
Decluttering 1 item a day. The whole house won’t get decluttered in a week, but imagine what could be accomplished by the end of the year;
Meditating for 5 minutes, twice a week. A nice way to get introduced to a new practice;
Tidying at night (Tiny Practice #3) from Monday to Thursday.
23. Just Get Rid Of It
Once in a while, take the things that have been piling up in your donation bin (Tiny Practice #2) and take them to where they’re supposed to go.
Don’t be the person that still has their clutter taking valuable space in their home.
Do you have Tiny Practices that you like and are helpful in your life? Share them below.
