"Best Year Yet" Mindset Transforms Ordinary Experiences Into Fulfillment
TL;DR
- Adopting the mindset that the upcoming year will be the "best year yet" can elevate ordinary or good years to great ones by focusing on optimizing daily experiences and happiness.
- Consciously framing daily moments through the "best year yet" lens, even during mundane or challenging situations like traffic, can shift mindset and improve overall well-being.
- Incorporating the "best year yet" expectation into long-term and weekly planning encourages bolder choices, such as suggesting social gatherings or improving meeting structures.
- This positive expectation allows individuals to transform a "ho-hum" year into a significantly better one by actively setting a higher standard for life experiences.
- While not a shield against tragedy, the "best year yet" mindset offers a powerful tool for maximizing happiness and fulfillment in the absence of major life disruptions.
Deep Dive
Adopting the mindset that the upcoming year will be the "best year yet" can significantly influence personal experience, transforming an ordinary year into a more fulfilling one. This optimistic framing acts as a self-fulfilling prophecy, not by altering external events, but by guiding daily decisions and attitudes toward actions that align with this elevated expectation. By consciously setting this high bar, individuals are encouraged to seek out and create opportunities for growth and happiness, even within routine moments.
The implication of this "best year yet" mindset is a shift from passively experiencing life to actively shaping it. When planning larger events, such as vacations or social gatherings, the phrase prompts consideration of more ambitious or enjoyable options, like renting a beach house with friends. Similarly, it encourages pursuing desired activities, such as signing up for a long-contemplated pottery class. This proactive approach extends to weekly planning, where the mindset can lead to initiating social connections, like suggesting coffee with a colleague, or improving mundane tasks, such as drafting an agenda for a tedious meeting. Even in challenging situations, like being stuck in traffic, repeating the phrase can serve as a mental reframing tool, prompting reflection on positive memories, engaging with enjoyable music, or connecting with loved ones, thereby elevating the quality of otherwise negative moments.
While acknowledging that unforeseen tragedies can disrupt any year, the core benefit of this mindset lies in its ability to enhance ordinary or "ho-hum" years. By setting the expectation of a best year, individuals are empowered to elevate their daily lives from merely acceptable to significantly better, or from good to exceptional. This deliberate cultivation of a positive outlook and proactive engagement with life's opportunities is the key mechanism through which the "best year yet" becomes a reality.
Action Items
- Draft "best year yet" mantra: Integrate phrase into weekly planning and daily mindset to elevate ordinary moments.
- Plan 3-5 aspirational activities: Suggest specific actions like beach rentals or pottery classes, framed by "best year yet" mindset.
- Implement daily mindset shift: Repeat "best year yet" during mundane or challenging moments to reframe perspective.
Key Quotes
"But one small tweak that can take time from great to awesome is to go into the year with the mindset that this will be your best year yet."
Laura suggests that adopting a positive mindset, specifically the belief that the upcoming year will be the "best year yet," can elevate an experience from merely good to exceptional. This perspective shift, according to Laura, is a simple yet powerful adjustment.
"I mean, why not? Some year has to be your best year yet. And a year is a very long time. Maybe many of your previous years have had some good elements. I certainly hope that they have. But I am guessing that you weren't thinking about optimizing the full 8,760 hours."
Laura questions the reluctance to embrace the idea of a "best year yet," pointing out that statistically, one year must hold this distinction. She implies that past years, while potentially good, were likely not optimized for maximum fulfillment across all hours, suggesting there is room for improvement.
"Even if there aren't big cool things happening this year, I am guessing that by focusing on elevating day-to-day life, you might make the sum total of happiness as large as it has ever been."
Laura proposes that even without major life events, concentrating on improving daily experiences can lead to the greatest overall happiness. This highlights Laura's belief in the cumulative impact of small, positive changes on long-term well-being.
"So think about how you might remind yourself of this phrase and how you might incorporate it into your planning and your daily mindset."
Laura advises listeners to actively integrate the "best year yet" concept into both their long-term planning and their daily thoughts. This suggests that consistent reinforcement of this positive affirmation is key to its effectiveness.
"When many moments are put through this rubric of it being the best year yet, well, it's just possible it will be the best year yet."
Laura posits that applying the "best year yet" framework to numerous individual moments increases the likelihood of the entire year living up to that expectation. This emphasizes Laura's view that a positive outlook on discrete events can shape the overall experience of the year.
"But it is also possible that nothing truly terrible will happen. This would naturally be just kind of a, ho-hum year, as they often are. But in those cases, it is possible to take normal life from okay to a lot better, or even from great to awesome, by setting the expectation that it will be."
Laura acknowledges that not every year will be marked by tragedy, and some may be ordinary. In such instances, Laura suggests that setting a high expectation for the year can transform a mundane experience into a significantly better or even an outstanding one.
Resources
External Resources
Websites & Online Resources
- IVeemhealth.com - Mentioned as the website to visit to start a personalized weight loss plan.
Podcasts & Audio
- Before Breakfast - Mentioned as the podcast producing this episode.
- Therapy for Black Girls - Mentioned as a podcast featuring cybersecurity expert Camille Stewart Gloster discussing online information protection.
Other Resources
- Best year yet - Mentioned as a phrase to repeat to foster a bigger and more fulfilling life.