{"id":1614,"date":"2023-03-02T18:49:02","date_gmt":"2023-03-03T01:49:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.happysimpleliving.com\/?p=1614"},"modified":"2024-05-02T15:50:17","modified_gmt":"2024-05-02T21:50:17","slug":"showing-kindness-to-my-future-self","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.happysimpleliving.com\/showing-kindness-to-my-future-self\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Ways to Be Kind to Your Future Self"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What if you could do something now to be kind to your future self<\/strong>? By taking actions now, you can bless yourself in the future and make things easier. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tips below are a starting place for self kindness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here’s an example of a situation where I applied this principle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Years ago we paid a lot of money for an artificial Christmas tree of the “pre-lit” variety with 1200 little white lights. It was great<\/em>! Until the lights started burning out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’ve ever removed the Christmas lights from a pre-lit fake tree, raise your hand now.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Removing<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Undoing the tightly-wrapped wires, twisting the clips loose and cutting the plastic zip-ties is a tedious, painstaking job that takes forever. One strand of lights took me more than an hour to remove, and this tree had, of course, 12 strands. Each year, I removed one or two strands before packing the tree up for the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After Christmas when the tree was down to its last two burned-out light strands, I was anxious to move it out of the living room and un-anxious to spend two hours on the loathesome task. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suddenly that little voice of reason in my mind said, “It’s a hassle, but this is a gift you could give yourself next December. Think how happy you’d be to open the box and discover a nice tree with no burned-out lights.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I sat down for a moment, intrigued by the concept of giving my own self a gift that would make me happy at the end of the year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I soon began writing down some other ideas. Now I actively look for strategies that will make life easier in the future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

8 Things to Do Now and Be Kind to Your Future Self<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. Save Money<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Regularly contribute to an investment or savings account. I’m funding a Roth IRA, for which I pay taxes on the earnings now. However, when I retire the income will be tax-free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Stay on Top of Clutter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If we continue to declutter<\/a> and get rid of unused items, when we’re older we won’t have to deal with too much stuff. Our adult children will breathe easier, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Get Regular Exercise<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Exercising and weight training will help our bodies stay well and keep functioning. I try to take a good walk each day, spend some time in the sunshine, and eat foods rich in calcium, so my future self enjoys strong bones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Make Time for Inner Growth<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I love to begin my day with an hour of quiet and time to read, meditate<\/a>, and pray. My hope is that as I age, I might grow in wisdom, kindness and understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Take Care of Your Teeth<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It just takes a few minutes to floss your teeth each day, but it’s a great investment in having a nice smile, healthy gums and strong teeth later in life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Seek Passive Income<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Explore sources of passive income, so money is coming in even if you’re not working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examples include book royalties, investment dividends, online courses, digital products, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Nurture Important Relationships<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Treasure and pursue relationships and friendships, so we can enjoy a rich social life throughout the years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. Exercise Your Brain<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Find ways to stretch your brain by trying and learning new things, and embracing challenging puzzles and problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While these are long-term habits, for more immediate gratification you might enjoy 5 ways to make tomorrow better<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you have more ideas about this subject? What do you do now that will pay dividends for your future self later? Drop a comment below!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Save For Later<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you use Pinterest to save and share ideas, here’s a handy pin!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

… Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5909,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"limit_modified_date":"1","last_modified_date":"2024-05-02T15:50:17","wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-simple-living","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"yoast_head":"\n8 Ways to Be Kind to Your Future Self - Happy Simple Living<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"These 8 ways to be kind to your future self are easy steps you can take now to make life easier for yourself in the months and years to come.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.happysimpleliving.com\/showing-kindness-to-my-future-self\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"8 Ways to Be Kind to Your Future Self\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Life can be easier in the future if you take these actionable steps now. 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