Appreciating the Little Things: Finding Joy in Every Day

Appreciating the Little Things: Finding Joy in Every Day

We rise every morning (sometimes afternoon) and perform our daily tasks on autopilot. We brush our teeth, hop in the shower, dress up, eat meals, yet none of these activities grab our 100 percent focus. Our minds are never present where our body is. We are in a constant hurry to finish all our assignments and hence we fail in appreciating the little things.

We live in a mechanical world

Today, there is a trend that is brewing in this world. The Hustle Culture. According to this, a human being is supposed to work day and night like a machine, producing first-class output, resulting in greed for more money or a higher status. It is known to cause several mental health issues and burnout. It sucks the joy right out of our life since we are in a quest for more.

Social media did a superb job in lowering our self esteem. Yes, I won’t deny the fact that social media connects the world and has helped all of us express ourselves. But, 90 percent of the content goes through layers of editing and filtering, creating unrealistic expectations in the real life. This creates FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and builds pressure within us to be better than others or at least be like others. This will lead to low self-esteem and an inferiority complex.

We all want to achieve big material things. We want to make a lot of money. The desire for money and luxury is an unending hunger that intensifies as we get more. We are always banging our heads to make more money and are never present at the moment.

Appreciating the little things: What’s this all about?

Life is short. We all know this. We hear news of people dying and their loved ones saying how they were going to buy a house next week or just got a promotion. I am not scaring you all. What I am saying is that life is shorter than we think. It is important to have big financial, professional and academic goals. But, it is also important to focus on everyday, little things and wins.

Connecting ourselves with every moment of our day brings us closer to our real self. It helps us discover ourselves and make suitable decisions. It clears the cloud of envy and lets us pave our own path and build our own dreams. This reduces the pressure and disconnects us from hustle and bustle of the hustle culture.

Everyday little things that deserve appreciation

• Good food and clean water
• Shelter
• Education
• Ability to breathe
• Healthy body
• Ability to move around
• Beautiful family and friends
• Feeling the sunshine
• Waking up to the alarm

Conclusion

I saw a post on Instagram that went something like this- whatever we do, instead of saying “I have to”, start saying “I get to”. For example, instead of saying “I have to write in my journal”, say “I get to write in my journal” and there is a huge shift in perspective.

In this fast-paced world, it’s difficult to keep up with the little moments that pass by in a blink of an eye. But, the least we can do is try. We don’t want to wake up one day wondering where all the time went. Isn’t it?

Also read: When Envy Gets Out Of Hand…