Try to find three good things every day.
Seligman's What-Went-Well practice can improve your well-being.
I took the famous "Science of Well-Being" class from Yale on Coursera last summer, and it changed my life. I recommend it so often that the people around me are probably tired of hearing about it! I went into the class skeptically, assuming it was about "positive thinking" or other saccharine, ineffective pseudo-science. But positive psychology isn't magical thinking or ignoring the bad stuff in your life. It's a guide to improving your psychological well-being, and it’s supported by research.
One of the most beneficial exercises from the course was the What-Went-Well practice from Martin Seligman's book, Flourish. It's simple enough. Every evening for at least a week, use this journaling prompt: "Write down three things that went well today and why they went well."
Your three things can be tiny or truly significant, anything from a butterfly spotted on a walk to landing a new and better job. The whys can be challenging, particularly in the beginning, and I think it's reasonable to spend a week or two simply listing your three things without examining why they went well. You can add the extra step after it starts to feel more natural.
Though different from the more popular gratitude list, this exercise has been proven to help boost happiness in a controlled psychological study.
Challenge:
Every evening for the next week, I urge you to list your own three things that went well. Remember, tiny things count! One of my items last week was literally, "I laughed at that stupid insurance commercial with the Pet Shop Boys song because singing a duet with an animated hood ornament is always going to seem hilarious to me, and I love Pet Shop Boys' music." Try to stick with this for at least a week. It sounds silly, but it works.
Weekly Check-In:
Did you figure out your "why" last week, or at least get closer to understanding it? How is your schedule shaping up this week? Remember to leave enough time in your evening routine to spend a few minutes jotting down your three things this week.
Until Next Time:
What-Went-Well is an ongoing practice for me. I have a long history of depression and anxiety, and this exercise has helped me immensely. I often struggle with thinking of a third thing, especially on very routine days, but I always recognize one eventually. I hope you find this practice as helpful as I have!
One last thing: I really do urge you to take the Science of Well-Being course if you have the time to take it on. I improved my score from a 4.94 to a 7.40 on the PERMA well-being scale -- and I took the course while I was experiencing a personal health crisis and living through the worst pandemic in a century. Not exactly a low-stress time! That's how effective these techniques are.