Key Takeaway
Before adding anything new, wellbeing grows most sustainably when you recognise and build on what already supports you. By pausing to notice the small, everyday practices that calm, energise, connect, or uplift you, you can intentionally dial them up. This “low-hanging fruit” approach makes change feel accessible, personalised, and supportive rather than effortful or overwhelming.
Transcript
It’s not an either-or. And to simplify it, you can turn to practices to do that. So you’ve got two things. You’ve got the science of positive psychology with all of its brilliant practices, but you also need, as I did, to bring this personal insight. You need a bit of mindful self-reflection.
When I look back at the things I picked, I knew that when I got focused on a goal, I could get really intense and I could burn myself out. So I asked myself, how do I focus on this without dropping everything? I knew that I needed good sleep to reduce stress and help balance energy. And that’s what I mean about the insights: taking time to pause, check in with yourself, and ask what you need and which practices would suit you best.
So let’s start doing some of this. Using the principle of positive psychology, which is to build on what already works, I want you to take two minutes to reflect on your life at the moment, or in the past, when you felt like you had more practices in place in your day that supported you.
That could be something that makes you feel calm or energizes you. It might shift your mood, make you feel more connected, or make you feel more switched on. As you start thinking of yours, I’ll share some examples people have mentioned in workshops before. People talk about smiling at dogs when they’re on their walks, playing with their cats on the grass, picking mushrooms, or taking mindful pauses when making a cup of tea and saying something kind to themselves.
Some people take a grounding pause when they put their feet on the floor when they get out of bed. Others look at funny pictures or cat videos to make themselves laugh. It might be putting on music you like or eating healthy food.
Any single thing that you have in your days or weeks that supports you, just scribble it down now. Two minutes isn’t enough to capture everything, but it’s enough to set an intention to start adding to this.
Over the next week, every time you think of something that supports you, add it to your list. For some people, that might be watering a plant and watching it grow. For others, it might be tidying and rearranging their space. All of these can be positive practices.
The key thing is that before I give you some new practices, capture on paper what already works for you. Over the next 21 days, we’ll become a bit more mindful about how you can fit these in.
If you’ve got any questions, pop them in the chat and I’ll answer them, or we’ll come back to them at the end.
Hopefully, you’ve got at least three things on your list. That’s the start of a practice. Every now and again, take a pause, take two minutes, and think about what’s working for you in your day-to-day life, what could be dropped, and what you could lean into more.
That’s what we call your low-hanging fruit. What already serves you. Can you dial it up by ten percent?
Reflection
Take two quiet minutes and reflect:
·What already supports me in my day or week, even in small or ordinary ways?
·How does each of these practices make me feel (calmer, more energised, more connected, more focused)?
·Which one of these could I gently dial up by 10% over the next week?
Want the full program?
Watch all lessons, track your progress, and connect with our practitioner community.