A famous author once wrote, “If standard of living is your number one objective, quality of life almost never improves. But if quality of life is your number one objective, standard of living invariably improves.” That famous author is none other than the great Zig Ziglar. Quality of life and standard of living can intertwine to help us experience an amazing life; however, focusing solely on improving our standard of living will not help us enjoy a good quality of life.

What is Quality of Life?

Many people simply define their quality of life by the amount of money they have. And, while money is a good barometer, it isn’t the full equation. Quality of life is the sum of your health, happiness, vitality, leisure, and finances. So, in order for you to enjoy a good quality of life, you must first decide what that good quality of life consists of – for you. We all want to be the healthiest we can be, and most of us continue to strive to be the healthiest, as that is the foundation for a good quality of life. Having great health is universal. However, when it comes to happiness, vitality, and leisure those are individual and must be defined by each of us, and subsequently courted. Our finances help us to maintain a good quality of life by affording us the proper foods, environs, and overall lifestyle we desire.

What is Standard of Living?

Standard of living is the lifestyle your level of finances can afford you. As mentioned above, your finances will have a huge effect on your quality of life, but it isn’t the full picture. Money does make the world go round! People with access to money and resources can most certainly improve many areas of their lives. Having an abundance gives us access to and inclusion in the upper echelons of society and all that it embodies. But it’s also been proven in studies that people with a lot of money aren’t statistically that much happier, simply because they have a lot of money. It takes much more than mere abundance of money for anyone to enjoy a good quality of life. Thus, for many experiencing an increase in their finances – without the other backing qualities for a good life, will only equate to a temporary improvement of happiness. Eventually, that sporadic boost of happiness will dissipate and the other underlying qualities – the intangibles, will need to be there to cushion them and ensure they continue to have a good quality of life.

So how can you improve the quality of your life?

You can improve the quality of your life by peaking what we term here The Five Ally’s, and designing what works best for you in the eight key areas of your life, then bringing “that” to fruition through mindset shift, good habits, and discipline.

We all get frustrated from time to time, and life can be overwhelming, even for the most optimistic, forward-thinking individuals. We make plans, set goals, and commit ourselves to accomplishing them but things don’t always go according to plan and without a clairvoyant view of our future it can be overbearing – when stances in life throws us off track, and makes us want to give up. This is why it is super important to look inward, work at peaking our Ally’s, and finding our happy place, which will create a safe haven – a place to always get back to, after we are sidetracked or knocked off course by life’s inevitable events.

When these things happen and you are faced with adversities, remember, you are not alone! We all go through periods of frustration, anxiety, fear, upset, and worry. Centering ourselves in the five Ally’s and aligning ourselves with the right people, environs, and ideal lifestyle we desire will certainly help us through those times, and ensure we get back to happy – enjoying a good quality of life after we have taken time out to grieve, mourn, and endure that period of downtime we experience as humans in this life form.

Here are Eighteen Surefire Things You Can Do to Enjoy a High Quality of Life:

1. Eat a Healthy Breakfast – Everyday

We know you’ve heard it before! But we are saying it again. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Studies have shown that women who skipped breakfast at least once per week were at higher risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes. And studies have shown that by eating breakfast everyday, men had lower incidences of heart disease. Studies have also shown that having breakfast everyday will increase memory, lower weight, and reduce LDL (bad cholesterol) for everyone. Fiber-rich breakfast including (ripe bananas, berries, avocados, almond filled cereals) topped with alkaline rich fruits (oranges, grapefruits, tangerine, watermelon, ripe bananas) will ensure you remain charged for your mornings, while fueling your body’s organs and systems for longevity. Our bodies need a healthy, balanced and nutritionally packed breakfast to help it operate optimally throughout each day. Considering that our health is the foundation for a good quality of life, why not do everything in your power to ensure you maintain great health?

2. Eat Green – Everyday

Eating green is about making healthy choices when it comes to the foods we eat on a daily basis. Choose to go the organic way! Foods that are organic in nature such as root vegetables, fruits, lemons, peppers, and so on (raw foods) contains the most alkaline and are best for balancing our pH level. Too much acid is bad for our health, thus our intake of acidic foods should be minimal. Green eating is not only great for our overall health and waistline, it’s also very good for our environment. Mix it up by enjoying a wide variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and protein-rich legumes. Food colors represent different antioxidants and nutrient-composition, so eat a wide variety to maintain excellent health so you can continue enjoying a high quality of life.

3. Exercise Regularly (no, once weekly does not qualify

Exercise comes in many form. As such, there is some form of exercise we all can do on a daily basis in order to keep our mind and body in excellent shape. No excuse! You can walk a few blocks making swift steps with coordinated brisk arm movements. If your arms cannot freely move as you walk, you will not experience a full body workout. Your feet will get that exercise, but your arms will not, so avoid hindering your arms with luggage. You may also jog a couple blocks, or dance through some aerobic/yoga/kickboxing if you prefer to stay indoor. These are all alternatives to going to the gym but we highly recommend the gym experience because it can be so wholistic and more than just exercise. In addition to tuning your entire body, keeping you in shape, and sharpening your mind, exercise adds vigor and vitality. It literally puts a “pep in your step” as some of our old folks usually say, and emits confidence. Our point is to find a simple daily exercise regimen and stick to it.

4. Drink Lots of Water & Remain Hydrated Throughout Your Day

We all know the health benefits of water both internally as well as externally. Our body needs water to transport nutrients from one point to another throughout our many internal systems, as well as to help maintain homeostasis. The daily recommended amount of water is usually 8 (8 oz) glasses, however, some of us may require more or less at different times (seasons) throughout each year. The more water you lose, the more you need to put in. For example, in the summer time we will need to drink more water than in the winter time, as the temperature (atmosphere) demands that we do. Also, depending on what you do for a living – how physically active you are, you may need to drink more water than someone who is not as physically active throughout their day as you will be losing more water through perspiration. This also should be done at regular intervals throughout the day – keep hydrated! So we all require varying amounts of water depending on our activity level, as well as environment. Don’t deny your body clean water! Like a vehicle needs fuel to function, so does our body needs water to function.

5. Brush, Floss Teeth & Tend Your Hygiene

This may seem like a no brainer, especially in todays advanced age where everything is so readily available, but some people are not taking advantage of this and their hygiene sucks! What does hygiene have to do with quality of life? The answer is A LOT! First of all, our gums are connected to the rest of our body and if those gums get bad from maltreatment, the bad unhygienic blood will go into the rest of the body and cause a lot of things to go wrong. Yes, gum disease can cause serious illness such as heart disease, erectile dysfunction, and delayed conception. No surprise here! Our heart pumps the blood flow throughout our body, and blood causes the penis to become erect. Don’t tamper with your blood! Secondly, cleansing our body removes dead cells, and just like the dead, it cannot remain a part of us. Dead cells need to be gone so our body can breathe – free of clogging. Brushing and flossing is very simple to do, and can be so very beneficial. And don’t you think a beautiful smile will enhance your social experiences as well as a pleasant hygiene? When you look and smell good, you feel good, and that by the law of attraction will be reciprocated.

6. Know Your Sleep Number & Get Ample Amount of Sleep

There is no question that sleep is a necessity for all of us. Studies have shown that not only does sleep help to improve things like memory, but it also helps to boost the longevity of life, increase awareness, and spur creativity. It is when we sleep that our body gets to repair, restore, and recharge our cells, organs and organ systems. But how much sleep is enough sleep? That will depend on our individual sleep numbers. And our individual sleep number can be ascertained by going to bed at a certain time (make a note of the time before sleeping) and sleeping until you awake and cannot go back to sleep even if you try, and you are feeling rested and energized. Make a note of the time you awake, then count the number of hours you slept for. Do this for seven nights, and the mode (hours that occur the most) will be your sleep number. For example, if on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday you sleep for 8 hours and wake up feeling amazing, and on Tuesday and Friday you sleep for 7 hours and wake up feeling amazing, your mode is 8 hours and so your sleep number is 8 hours. You can try this for longer if you wish, but the point is that YOU – like all of us – have your own unique sleep number and you should find it and ensure you get it on a nightly basis. Sleep deprivation deprives us of living and enjoying a high quality of life. Know your sleep number and get it!

7. Meditate & Connect With Your Source – Everyday

It is true that getting away from the hustle & bustle of everyday life and connecting with our self and our source, will have us living a more enriching, meaningful and fulfilling life. Pausing and resorting to quiet solitude allows us to fill up and replenish on a spiritual level so we are able to operate in our highest self and optimal power. We are all connected to a higher source, and whether we believe it or not, tapping into that source will help us to become our best selves. Practicing the art of meditation also decrease stress levels, normalize blood pressure, and ease anxiety. This doesn’t have to be all religious; just go to a quiet place, sit quietly and be present. Don’t think about the past or the future. Don’t dwell on things or worry; just be in the moment. Sit silently with your eyes closed and listen to the sounds around you, or nothingness if indoors. If you have quiet places outdoor where you can be close to nature, choose to meditate there instead. Feel the air moving in and out of your lungs, the warmth of the sun on your body, the coolness of the breeze sweeping over you. Be still and present. That’s all it takes. Meditation calms our nerves, centers us, and makes us better in temperament, vitality, and actions. You will find how amazing it is to connect with your higher self and the clarity and confidence you will come away with each time. Meditate and connect with your source to experience a higher quality of life.

8. Exercise Your Mental With Daily Learning

There is an old saying that if we do not use it we will use it, and this is one area where this can definitely be applied. Millions of neurons die everyday because they are not being used up. And neurons are needed for our brains and minds to be at their sharpest and best. Learning daily will keep them working and preserve our ability to remember things. Also, learning new things allow us to grow, mature, and gain experiential knowledge of the world and be better comrades for each other. It allows us to put life into perspective, and ultimately achieve our dreams by laying the groundwork for our personal and professional lives. There are tons of ways available to do this – thanks to technology! You can get you a book, newspaper, magazine, video tutorial, blog post, or anything else that you enjoy using as a learning resource and partake everyday.  You an access one of the many Meetups and events and sign up to participate and do different things to exercise different parts of the brain.  Don’t get your brain stuck in a SPINN cycle!  Go for walks, learn new things (gardening, farming, fishing, cooking), meet new people, see live plays, and indulge in games.   You don’t have to commit to using up a lot of your time! You can use just 15 – 20 minutes some days to exercise those neurons and mental muscles, and an hour to a few hours on other days and become more well-rounded while enjoying a high quality of life.

9. Make Connections, Give & Receive Love

Connecting socially is a part of who we are. We cannot get away from it! Whether it’s with family, friends, colleagues or business associates, we must make and maintain connections in order to enjoy a high quality of life. It’s the most amazing thing to receive love, but it is also highly fulfilling to give love and experience the joy of the recipients. Even animals are capable of giving and receiving love, and it is one of the most precious things to experience. Don’t refuse those hugs and positive gestures! If someone has wronged you and acknowledged that they have and seek your forgiveness, please do not turn them away. Depending on the circumstance, it may be more difficult to embrace forgiveness – especially while the hurt is fresh, but will yourself to forgive – not so much for them but for you – and work at forgiving them in your own timing. You can say to them, “what you’ve done is horrible, and at this time I cannot forgive you but I will work at getting to that point – in time.” As humans we have the capacity to hurt each other so immensely – unfortunately, and the effects can linger and stay with us for years – and sometimes forever. But we cannot allow the fear of being hurt by someone to shut us off from everyone; not if we want to enjoy a high quality of life. We must open our hearts, and trust that the universe will respond to our kindness with kindness, and love with love. Nurture those relationships that mean the most to you! The ones that embrace reciprocity and have proven to be solid over time.

10. Keep a Positive Mind and Attitude

Remaining in a sphere of positivity is really the greatest thing for our mind, body, and spirit. Positive thinking keeps us in high vibration and high vibration is necessary for the best work to be done in us, and through us. Positivity shines through, and pulls positive things, people, and circumstances to us. Negative thoughts distort our good energy, and attracts negative, ugly, destructive things to us. Try doing anything, for example going on an interview, while thinking negative thoughts and see what happens. Then try again while thinking positive thoughts and see what happens. Total difference! If you think all is well, you are the best, you will succeed, you will be well received, the universe will respond with that same high level of positivity. And not only that, but when you think it will be ok, you can do it, you got this, your whole attitude and behavior will emit and translate that to everyone in your presence.

11. Find and Remain in Your Happy Place

Our happy place is where all the magic happens! And we are all capable of finding that place in our lives. Your happy place is that mental, physical space where you feel your best; where your heart is at ease and your inside is shining through to your outside. You are at peace with yourself, your creator, and your fellow earth inhabitants. Happiness is universal, we all want it! However, what constitutes that happiness is very much individual. When we find our happy place, we are able to enjoy a higher quality of life as we will always be able to bounce back from all the darts life throws at us more easily than not having that solace we’ve created. Behavioral psychologists, Donald T. Campbell and Phillip Brickman, coined the term for this happy place, “Hedonic Treadmill,” or “Hedonic Adaptation” which refers to the natural tendencies for humans to revert back to a set point of happiness after major changes whether positive or negative in their lives. It is so essential to always be at a high frequency. We are huge believers in the Law of Attraction here at My Blooming Biz, and the Universe does respond in a “like with like” manner. So when you are happy, you are in high frequency operating at a higher vibration, and everything happy will find you.

12. Determine the Things or Space That Relaxes You – Early

Being here on this earth as a sojourner will not always be what we want it to be. Things will happen! And some of those things has the ability to shake us to our very core. When these things happen, we will need to find inner peace, and that is why it is super important to know ourselves and develop habits that caters to our internal solace. It may be reading certain genre of books, listening to certain genre of music, taking a warm bath, going to the Spa, cooking up a new recipe, laying on the beach, taking a long trip, volunteering, exercising or going for a stroll. Whatever excites you and gets you thoroughly involved is what you will need to turn to whenever you have faced difficult situations or just need a picker upper. So determine what that is now, so you can partake when needed and continue to enjoy a high quality of life.

13. Create Happy Moments With The People Who Means The Most To You

This should be the main priority of everyone of us! What’s our purpose for being here on this earth living if not to share meaningful experiences? If not to invite others in to our beautifully unique aura of existence and accept their invitations to theirs? Don’t be taking the important people in your life for granted! Do the best you can to not only tell them but also show them how much you love and appreciate them, and how much they mean to you. Take them out sometimes! And make memories with them! Great experiences and moments make our hearts glad and release those powerful endorphins that has the potential to add years to our lives. And you know what? The memories of those happy moments and experiences will always be there to cushion us, revitalize and reinvigorate us when we need them most.

14. Develop a Habit to Smile Even When Going Through

Yes, develop a habit of smiling regardless of what you are going through. Yes, you will cry, you’re human. You may also grieve and mourn, but try not to dwell there. Develop the habit to take incremental moments in the midst of what you are experiencing, to remember something happy – happy moments, pleasant experiences and just smile. Smile through your tears and escape to those happier times – even temporarily. This will have a tremendous effect on your heart, psyche, body, and spirit. The effects of smiling on stress have been well-documented. Smiling helps to send a strong impulse to the mind, which then alters our neurochemistry. Studies have shown that people who were told to hold a genuine smile on their faces had lower heart rates after stressful activities. Practice this and allow your smile to help you navigate the tough terrains and keep your mind, body, and spirit light.

15. Manage Your Time Wisely

One of the greatest masterminds to ever live, Stephen R. Covey, in his book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” laid out a chart he created called The Four Quadrants which represents the 4 areas that we usually spend time in. And according to Covey, to be highly effective with our time, we have to ensure we prioritize the quadrant we spend most of our time in. At MBB, we utilize Covey’s teaching in all we do here, because we know that time is our most precious commodity. Time wasted cannot be regained! Money wasted can be regained, and much more, but not time. And that is why we implore you to use your time to enrich your life and the lives of your loved ones. Decide who and what is important to you and be sure to channel your time and energy there. Don’t allow others to dictate where you invest your time, you decide based on what’s best for you. As our CEO Eugénie Nugent always say here at MBB, “Don’t allow anyone to mindlessly use your time! People will, if you let them. Instead, mindfully use your time to your benefit; to get you to your BIG goal.”

16. Set Goals & Ensure You Accomplish Them

Yes, set those goals and allow nothing and no-one to hinder you from accomplishing them. Set your money goals, your growth goals in short and long-term intervals and implement strategies to accomplish them. You may need to work on discipline and mindset shift in order to get to your goals but if your goals are important to you, you will do whatever it takes to reach them. One very important thing I want you to note, however, is that your goals must be SMART. Writing and implementing SMART goals will be the determining factor of whether those goals are realized or not.

17. Implement Strategies to Keep You Inspired

One of the best ways to add vitality to your life is through daily inspiration. What’s your inspiration? What inspires and motivates you to push towards your dreams? Know what that is, and implement strategies to keep you inspired. For example, deciding on how you want to live your life then creating a vision board to represent that lifestyle, and placing it in a conspicuous spot so you can see it everyday. We have created our Lifestyle Designing Workbook, which is a FREE 41 page workbook that is geared towards helping women figure out what they truly want, so they can get to mapping and executing their how to get it. And we also host vision board parties as part of our Design Your Dream Lifestyle events which are held twice each year in various cities. Another great way to ensure you remain inspired is to document your goals, checkmark each when accomplished, and celebrate those wins, those milestones. We all need inspiration! It’s a part of who we are, and if we are intentional about staying inspired, we will remain inspired.

18. Setup Systems to Continuously Increase & Manage Your Money

Unless you have inherited and are connected to an unlimited money source or by some stroke of luck find yourself with an unlimited money source, you need to be mindful of your money in and out flows. And the best way to do this is to create a budget based on the monies you are currently receiving, then track and effectively manage it. You want to keep your outflows less than your inflows, and you also want to create systems that allow money to flow in without you actively involved in every aspect – a passive income system. In making your budget, ensure you have a provision for saving included. Many people can tell you their income right off the bat. They know just how much money they make since it generally tends to be fixed. But, most people cannot tell you how much they have spent in a certain category of expense for the previous month. Close enough attention isn’t paid to money that’s going out, just money that’s coming in. This is a method for disaster! Committing serious financial suicide! Create and stick to a budget. This should allow you to save and invest your money over time. If you don’t stick to a budget, it’s much harder to get ahead and accomplish your income goals. Knowing just how much money you can or can’t spend every day will help you to stay on track. Tracking & auditing expenses should be something done on a daily basis.

Whether you use a notepad or a digital spreadsheet, it’s important to know every penny going out the door. Set aside a portion of your income (upwards of 20%) and let it increase so you can later use it for investment opportunities. Investment is a great way to earn huge ROI on your initial investment. Some investments are purchasing stocks and bonds, buying and flipping houses, and buying and renting out buildings. Our finances help us to access and enjoy a higher standard of living, and as our CEO here at MBB always says, “Having your finances in order is the highest form of self love, a love that cannot help but to command respect.” We wholeheartedly embrace this! You may want to automate monies from your checking to your savings account at a specific time each month to ensure monies are being tucked away and not showing up as available in your checking account 😊

All these 18 surefire things you can do to enjoy a high quality of life, are embodied in The Five Ally’s. And so working at peaking your five Ally’s as well as identifying and courting what works best for you in the eight key areas of your life, will ensure you enjoy a high quality of life.

With love, gratitude, and empowered attitude,