A better future begins with the things you decide on now. That’s why being in the ‘present’ often includes being aware of how your actions affect your future. It won’t do you well to fret about what may happen, but that doesn’t mean you should waste your present in careless abandon. Enjoying the present doesn’t mean you don’t care about the future; nor does doing only the things that might benefit your future will make you happy. It’s all about finding the proper balance, the sweet zone between what you enjoy and what will reap benefits.
You should take action now and do things that will make you feel good and feel thankful. The key here is not to overthink about the future, but instead ask yourself the question: what do I enjoy now that will benefit me in the future? Of course, there are thousands of answers to this question, but we’ll help you narrow it down by presenting a few.
Start Exercising
Exercising and relaxing are probably two things many people don’t relate to each other. But ask any fitness buff what it’s like to exercise, they will most likely answer that it’s relaxing. And it is the truth – exercise can help you manage stress and anxiety better. It’s an effective stress reliever and makes you feel good by releasing ‘happy chemicals’ in your brain. It can help you now by alleviating your stress and, in the long term, by making your body physically stronger and boosting your immune system. It also improves your posture and muscle structure. Many years down the line, you’ll be thanking yourself that you started exercising.
Invest in Your Home
Your house is your abode, your place of shelter, both from the elements and the stress. It is a place to relax and unwind, somewhere you can feel safe and secure. That’s why investing in your home is necessary for a better life. While you may be thinking, “I don’t have enough money for that!” you don’t have to splurge thousands in one go. If anything, you should be spending slowly over a few years. Accumulate the things you need gradually, like outdoor bollard lights for your garden for particularly dark winter nights or a good home theater system for a future entertainment room. Your future self will thank you that you’ve bought these things early on, so you wouldn’t have to invest in them when you’re finally putting your money into a property of your own.
Learn Cooking
At some point in your life, consider learning how to cook seriously, either for professional or personal reasons. Now is the time for that. Learning how to cook good food will help you stay motivated and healthy. It gives you something to look forward to after a tiring week. After all, everyone wants to eat good food, and eating good food is easy when you know how to cook. There are other benefits to this as well. You get to save money from eating out; you can decide what diet to pursue since you can prepare it yourself, and you can cook for your loved ones, as well. Years down the line, when you’re enjoying a delicious meal you just whipped up, you’ll be grateful that you decided to learn to cook.
Study Personal Finance
Personal finance is among those things anyone will benefit from learning. It’s one of the most significant pieces of information to live a secure life. You may be having financial difficulties right now, but that’s something you can eventually overcome if you know personal finance. A lack of financial knowledge often means you make harmful but preventable financial decisions. You may avoid that by educating yourself on how to manage your finances. This will help you be more financially responsible, save money, and live a secure life in the future. When an emergency occurs, you won’t be grasping for straws as you are financially prepared to address them. You will also have enough financial power to purchase things, such as a car or a house. Study personal finance now, and live a better life.
Play Video Games
You might think that playing video games is counterintuitive to the idea of ‘doing things to help your future self,’ but it does help you, both now and in the future. For one, it enables you to relax now. Playing video games is a common recreational hobby because it’s fun and relatively accessible. It will help your future self have an outlet from stress and a hobby to look forward to. Seeing your favorite character appear in a new video game or anticipating the next console release might sound like shallow joys, but they are joys nonetheless. And studies have shown that little pleasures can trigger hormonal processes that are proven beneficial to the body.
Exercising, buying things for your home, learning to cook, learning about personal finance, and playing video games are just five of the things you can do today that will have long-term benefits for you. If you want to look back to this time positively in your senior years, start doing them.
