Life Hacking — How to Have a Good Life and Nice Things

After covering life principles, methods and perspectives, let’s talk about practical things we can do to have la dolce vita, the sweet life.

I use a simple “5-finger Wellbeing Check” to monitor my wellbeing. Every now and then, especially when I am stuck, scared, disillusioned, or going through a hard time, I would examine the following using my left hand fingers:

1. Thumb: body and mind. How’s my physical health? How’s my spirit and mental health? How well am I eating, exercising, sleeping, and managing stress? This is the foundation of everything, without which, the other fingers cannot stand. More in Self > Body Hacking and Mind Hacking.
2. Index finger: life purpose. Purpose is what makes living worthwhile, so it comes only second to body and mind. Do I know what my callings are? Are they still the same as before? Am I pursuing my purposes? Am I encountering obstacles? How do I overcome them? More in Life > Life Perspectives > Pursuit of Happiness and Purpose.
3. Middle finger: work & income. For obvious reasons the middle finger is devoted for work and income. Am I happy at my job? If not, how I can move to a happier job? Do I make enough to support myself, my family and a decent life? If not, what do I need to do? More in Life > 5 Simple Things You Can Do Now to Make an Instant and Lasting Difference in The World.
4. Ring finger: love & family: The finger on which wedding rings are traditionally worn is dedicated to love and family. Do I have someones to love? Is the love unobstructed? If no, what should I do? Is my family doing well? If not, how can I help? Here, love not only covers our love for self, family, romance and friends, but also extends to love for communities, places, ideologies, humanity and the environment. More in Groups > Groups We Are In & Their Significance.
5. Pinky: the good life: Last but still essential is having a good time in life. To me, this includes food, home, traveling, hobbies, entertainment, civic life, etc.. More below.

You may personalize the above to your own priorities, adding or subtracting fingers as you see fit. To me, the holy grail in life is achieved when the pursuit of my life’s purposes, driven by my body and soul, gives me enough income to support myself, my family, my community, and a decent living.

What constitutes a good life?

You probably have clear goals for your body, mind, purpose, work, love, and family. Do you have ideas of what makes a good life? Below are a few aspects I’d like to highlight:

• Enjoy H.E.L.F. food: healthy, (just) enough, local and fresh. More in Self > Body Hacking > Eating.
• Declutter your home: make room for yourself by practicing DanShaRi and challenging yourself to own fewer than 1,000 things, including your wardrobe.
• Spend good times with friends, preferably those who lift you up.
• Participate in communities and sports that nurture you.
• Seek meaningful life experiences such as traveling, seeing performances, going to nature, appreciating art, etc..
• Cultivate a digital life that doesn’t exploit you. See World > Systemic Anti-bullying > From Tech Disruption to Tech Abuse and From Cognitive Warfare to Cyberbullying.
• Have a robust and hyperlocal civic life: See World > D3: Deliberative, Direct Democracy.
• Finally, whatever life throws at you, build resilience and keep your life open to changes. See Self > Principles > Growth Mindset and Life > Principles > Open Life View.

We will further explore how to make a positive impact while enjoying life in Life > 5 Simple Things You Can Do Now to Make an Instant and Lasting Difference in The World.

Do you have any suggestions, doubts, hypothesis or experience for this topic? Please comment below 👇!