1-1-1: how I use games as an incentive
read about how to gamify your life, updates about the podcast, and a quote about happiness.
june, 2023
edition 22.
I was reaaaally hoping to get back into my podcasting grove and have something posted for this week but:
covid bivalent booster (I’m late to the game I know!)
routine doctors appointments
applying for my visa
housing stress
has really just zapped me of any and all creative energy :( I have something filmed and will hopefully have it edited for next week, yay! I also still need to edit another solidarity episode with one of my friends that we filmed back in april… so. so. behind with the podcast.
in other news: I’ve been killing the reading game by reading ~4 books a week, ah! truly a summer of rest and relaxation before a little bit of travel begins <3
you can expect one email from me every week containing:
one quote that has been inspiring me
one journal prompt
one piece of advice*
* = if you want to submit a question for my upcoming emails, you can find the form here.
podcast
no new podcast episode this week (next week *fingers crossed*) — listen to my old episodes here <3
one quote
“happiness is not how your life appears, it is the quality of your connection to it. how deeply and intimately those bonds run.
how much you truly cared about what you were doing and the people around you and the memories you made and how bravely you put your heart into your days, rather than hiding yourself away and wondering if you could make things appear full on the surface, while it all sits empty just beneath.”
—brianna wiest via instagram
one journal prompt
what is something you enjoyed doing as a child? schedule an hour of that activity into your week.
one piece of advice
“Feeling meh for some reason, could you give some advice?”
I read this brianna wiest quote today and I thought it fit perfectly with this question. I want to first address that it can sound a bit preachy (“happiness isn’t something you find, it’s something you create! just think happy thoughts and your life will become better!”) — that is not the energy I derive from the quote, nor is it what I want to put out.
as I say in most of my newsletters now, I don’t want to come from a place of 'preachiness,’ I always just want to share my advice and knowledge in the hopes that someone can benefit from it.
the first thing that truly changed my life (and this was a hard, hard pill to swallow) was to stop throwing myself a pity party. bad things aren’t happening to me because I’m a bad person and life is unfair; bad things happen to everyone. the most important thing is how we pick ourselves up in the hard times. learning to persevere in the hardest of times has helped me become the person I am (with the life I have) today.
with this mindset shift, I felt like I could truly take control of my life back. because, at the end of the day, isn’t that what we all want? control?
I kept scrolling on my pinterest home page and instagram feeds and hoping that a perfect life would fall into my lap. I thought that hoping and wishing my way out of a rut would somehow actually pull myself out of a rut. spoiler alert, it didn’t!
I talk about this a lot, especially in relation to project 50 and the consistency project, but my literal keyyyy to leading a happier and more fulfilling life (i.e. my “secret” if you will) is this: gamify your life.
now this might be because I’m interested in and have studied behaviour in an academic context, or because I just looove a good idle game, but I truly believe that giving each day a purpose has given my entire life a purpose. if you’re striving to complete a few tasks each day (and, just like in a game, you can reward yourself with small things at the end of each week), it gives you:
something to strive for each day
another thing to focus on besides your feelings
an inevitable mindset shift
how you live each day is how you live your life. if I’m doomed to repeat one day for the rest of my life, I definitely want to make that day count!
ultimately, any sort of gamification or ‘project’ or list of tasks to complete each day or intention helped pull me out of a rut. I’ve used different projects during different times of my life (project 50 works really well for me during breaks, whereas the consistency project works better during school) but they all resulted in the same thing: a happier and healthier version of myself.
I’m on day 16 today! if you want to follow along with my project 50 journey or just learn more about it, head over to my instagram @katie.eu :)
reading updates
currently reading: percy jackson and the lightning thief by rick riordan
finished this week:
legend by marie lu (#1)
prodigy by marie lu (#2)
champion by marie lu (#3)
rebel by marie lu (#4)
legend short stories (#0.5, #3.5, #3.75)
if you want to keep up with my reading throughout the week, this is my goodreads :)
enjoyed this edition?
until we meet again,
katie