5 things to do to feel happier at home

I’m quite a homebody at heart.

I really love spending time at home.  Lazy days spent pottering around in the house are quite often what my introvert-self needs.

There are times though when being at home isn’t as relaxing as it should be.  Normally when the clutter has started to pile up again and things aren’t as clear and calm as they could be.

If you find that being at home isn’t quite as relaxing as you’d like it to be, here are 5 things you can do to start to feel happier at home.

1. Don’t go too minimalist

There is a big trend at the moment for quite minimalist homes.

And I’m all for a good decluttering session and getting rid of things that we don’t use or love.  But I’m also a firm believer in keeping things in our homes that have sentimental value to us.  Those things that spark happy memories when we look at them.

Studies have shown that experiences tend to make us happier than material possessions, and this is mainly thanks to the whole journey of enjoyment that we get from experiences.  We enjoy the anticipation of planning.  Then we have the fun of the actual experience itself.  And after it’s done we have the joy of remembering the experience.

Having things in our homes that remind us of these experiences, and time spent with loved ones, is a great way to feel happier at home.

2. Make your bed

If you only manage one thing each day to make your home a happier place to be then make it this.

When Gretchen Rubin wrote her book ‘The Happiness Project‘ she found that “the number one most impactful change that people brought up over and over” in terms of feeling happier, was making the bed.

It seems that doing this one little thing, and feeling the satisfaction of seeing a neat, made bed, then prompts us to be more productive as we go about the rest of our day.  And having a clear, relaxing bedroom to head to at the end of the day is definitely a plus.

I like to leave our bedcovers pulled back for a while in the mornings to let the bed air, but I know that on the days that I make a point of going back and making the bed later that the whole room does just feel so much neater and more inviting.

3. Reset the room

This sort of goes hand in hand with my tip to never leave a room empty handed.

Now I’m not saying every time you leave the lounge to pop to the bathroom or make a cuppa you need to tidy up before you go.  More like when you head out of your bedroom for the day after getting dressed, do a quick whizz around and put the room back to ready.  Make your bed, hang up the clothes you decided not to wear, grab your water glass and take it down to the kitchen with you.

The same goes in the evening when you turn off the TV to head to bed.  Take any cups and dishes out to the kitchen, stash all the rogue toys in a basket, and put the throws and cushions back nicely on the sofa.

4. Get into the things you can’t get out of

There are always jobs to do around the house that need to be done even though we really don’t feel like doing them.

The trick to cracking on with them is to do whatever you can to get into these jobs that you just can’t get out of doing.  Make up a playlist to listen to while you whizz round the house with a duster.  Get mindful when it comes to washing up and try to actually enjoy the sensations of the warm water and the bubbles.  Catch up on your latest Netflix obsession while you do the ironing and fold the clean clothes.

These jobs need doing anyway, so we may as well try and find a way to make them as enjoyable as possible.