The book covers one thing to focus on each week. If we make small changes slowly, the will more likely stick with us. It’s hard to get rid of bad habits, but much easier to replace it with better habits.
Each week has a suggestion as to why this focus is beneficial and recommendations to help implement the change. There are four areas of our life that the book is focused on. Some changes are broad and cover all four while some are narrow and only address one or two. The four areas are:
Stress Management
Concentration and productivity
Memory and Anti-aging
Happiness and fulfillment
The overall goal is for you to become more productive, have a happier outlook, be young at mind, and improve your self-esteem and self-confidence.
Life is a balancing act and some weeks suggestions will be easy to implement and some will be more difficult as life happens in spite of what we might do. Give yourself a week for each suggested action to work into your new way of doing things. Personally, I found that to do these things your must be your own life coach. Sure it would be nice to have someone hold your hand and remind you to do things, but you must reach deep inside and decide if you want to really do these things yourself. It’s not always easy to adopt new habits.
This review will not cover each of the 52 changes but highlight a few to give you an idea of the book’s contents. If you plan to adopt these into your life, you might mark your calendar to read and ponder on one each Monday, and then practice it daily during the week.
Change number 1 – Put pen to paper. Journaling has been around for eons with one of the first to do this was Marcus Aurelius when he wrote To Myself . You can write down how you feel each day, what you are grateful for and plans for improvement all without judgment by others. This helps clear our minds and reflect upon things. You can become more creative and tap into innovative solutions. The act of writing helps release our emotions, so they are not bottled up. As a newbie, just give yourself 10 minutes a day to start. It can be digital, or you can use a pen and paper. Let it pour out of you. To get started maybe choosing a theme or topic for the week to discuss with yourself. Keep it as private as you want. Maybe password protect it or lock up your book. In digital form, you can add pictures or audio or video recordings. Maybe have a separate book or special section where you keep track and comment on your 52 changes.
Change number 7 – Forget the Jones. Comparing ourselves to others begins at a young age. Be it grades, looks, money, muscles, friends, whatever… it leads to misery and feelings of emptiness. If you do it because it inspires, then that’s ok. Most of the times it robs us of joy. This can lead to a cycle of feeling that we never have enough. Try relying on self-approval and you don’t need to compare as you know you have what you need and what’s appropriate for you. If you are a victim of this thought process, it may take some time and effort to change as it can be so deeply rooted you don’t consciously do it. Start by acknowledging it and ask why. Does it make you feel sad or bad about yourself. Change your attitude to be grateful for what you have. More does not always equate with happiness. Make your choices on what you NEED not what you WANT. Do what satisfies you, not what your neighbor thinks.
Change number 22 – Eat Good Fats. Good nutrition is necessary for a healthy body and mind. The brain is about 60% fats. Eating trans-fats and saturated fats leads to health issues such as dementia and cognitive issues. Fatty fish such as salmon and sardines provide the brain with necessary Omega -3 essential fatty acids. Nuts and seeds which tend to be rich in vitamin E and antioxidants boost cognitive function. Avocados and olives (and their oils) help maintain brain cells and healthy blood flow. Eggs are high in protein, vitamin E and choline which aids in the construction of neurotransmitters which is crucial to memory.
As you can see from these examples, you have a weekly “lesson” and days to practice before moving to the next item. The list order is arbitrary as you do not need to do them in order. I think most people would find the suggestions reasonable and a good way to form good habits and improve our mental and physical health.
So, my experience went like this for four weeks.
Week 1 – Journaling, some days I wrote several lines, some days more. I came up with a template and some items to spur my thinking such as three things to be grateful for, did I call a friend, reach out to a family member, self-care, meditation, and so one. I then listed the days of the week and then would glance at the items I had listed to get me started. At the end of the week, I would look at my comment and see if I could come up with a brief summary of the week in two or three sentences. Journaling is something that has to develop, I think.
Week 2 – Music – each day of the week, I tried to listen to something new in different genres that I usually don’t listen to. So, the week included, jazz, classical, new age, hip-hop, country, foreign, and religious. It was interesting. I like some jazz and a little classical but not opera. New age covered a wide range of sounds. Hip-hop requires some patience as it’s new to me. Most is explicit which I could skip as well as singing/rapping about violence. Foreign included Astrid Gilberto, a Brazilian singer, who passed away recently. She moved between English and Portuguese. I remember her from years ago. Also, I like Shakira. Admittedly you must be interested in trying something new. Apple Music and Spotify have enormous libraries to explore. Music release hormones such as melatonin that regulates sleep and dopamine that affects pleasure. So what’s not to like about your favorite songs. Integrate it into your life and listen when doing chores, a hobby, taking a walk and so on.
Week 3 – Smiling. Even when you are having a terrible, really, really bad day, a smile can make it seem better. Even though we are told to grin and bear it, struggling to make a smile can reduce negative feelings. Sometimes it is fun to smile as it makes people wonder what you are up to. It can also create positive feelings for others. It can be contagious also. People seem more approachable when they smile, and it reduces wrinkles too. Children smile more than adults and even our pets sometimes seem to join in with a funny look. If you are struggling to do so, try to post some cues around like funny sayings or cartoons to get you in the mood. It might seem difficult, but smiling and saying hello to strangers might seem awkward, but it can rub off on others. When it’s time, moving to laughter, which is a smile on steroids can draw attention away from anger, resentment and worry.
Week 4 – Setting Goals. Einstein said that if we want a happy life, tie it to a goal, not people or things. While I agree that goals are important to help us feel that we are striving towards and accomplishing things that are in line with our principles, a system of getting there is just as important. Like winning a football game by score more goals than you opponent, having successful plays and coordinated team work, as a system, is mandatory to win. Accomplishing our goals does contribute to our happiness and self-confidence and quash negative feelings. Goals setting can aid us throughout life and can even push us out of our comfort zone to require us to learn new skills and maintain a growth mindset.
Be sure your goals are authentic to you and what you want. Big goals will require small steps to reach them. Reaching the smaller steps feels good. Experts advise that goals should be S.M.A.R.T and now E. (specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, timely and emotional – you are connected to it). Journaling also helps us think about our effort to reach goals and provides a sense of responsibility an seriousness. We may refine things as we go along and journaling helps us in thinking through our journey.