The Best Articles in Better Living
The most useful articles and videos in Better Living from around the web—beginners to advanced—curated by thought leaders and our community. We focus on timeless pieces and update the list whenever we discover new, must-read articles or videos—make sure to bookmark and revisit this page.
Top 5 Better Living Articles
At a glance: these are the articles that have been most read, shared, and saved in Better Living by Refind users.
Videos
Watch a video to get a quick overview.
Antifragility: How to use suffering to get stronger
Happiness is temporary, antifragility lasts forever, explains Jonathan Haidt and 5 other experts.Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/...
Follow Your Passion is Terrible Advice. Here's Why.
A super popular piece of career advice is to follow your passion, but actually that's not the best thing you can do to find a career you actually love. In th...
I Asked 15 Experts For Life Advice. Here's What I Learned.
Thanks to Emma for sponsoring this video. Use code ALIDREAM to save another 5% on top of all ongoing discount promotions on the website here: http://www.emma...
How to manage your time more effectively (according to machines)
Human beings and computers alike share the challenge of how to get as much done as possible in a limited time. Over the last fifty or so years, computer scientists have learned a lot of good…
Dan Harris: The benefits of not being a jerk to yourself
After more than two decades as an anchor for ABC News, an on-air panic attack sent Dan Harris's life in a new direction: he became a dedicated meditator and, to some, even a guru. But then an…
What is ...?
New to Better Living? These articles make an excellent introduction.
What is Your Ikigai?
Ikigai is really your reason for being, the thing that gives you direction and motivation, and it is at the heart of what we do at Learnlife.
«“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why” - Mark Twain»
Philosophy of Happiness
INTRO Here’s a short introduction to some of the most fascinating philosophical issues about happiness. We are going to look at three...
What Is Self-Gaslighting?
How we pick up the torch from the gaslighter and turn it on ourselves.
«Most of us have heard of gaslighting. It’s a form of emotional abuse that uses manipulation and minimization to make someone question their reality.»
How to ...?
How to Improve Your Self-Esteem in 5 Minutes or Less
There are no quick fixes for low self-esteem: There’s no profound insight your therapist can give you that will suddenly improve your self-esteem There’s no secret mantra that will unlock your inner…
«If you spend your entire childhood learning that you’re not good enough or not lovable, that’s not something that’s going to change overnight.»
How to break unhealthy habits: Stop obsessing over willpower and focus on routines
Understanding and changing the environment in which habits form is a critical step when it comes to breaking unwanted behaviors and forming healthy ones.
«Instead, we concoct more compelling explanations, like saying we drink coffee to ease our morning fog.»
How to conquer digital distractions
Digital distractions are all around us. Here's how to combat them so you can stay focused and productive at work.
«Users were gambling every time they shared a photo, web link, or status update,»
How to figure out what you want out of life
What society expects of you and what you actually want in life can be different things.
«At any age, setting aside time and intentionality to decipher what motivates you and whether you’ve been living authentically can be enlightening»
How to get better at making every type of decision
Here’s what to do if you regularly wish you could hire someone to make all your choices for you.
«Keeney advises asking yourself, “What do I hope to achieve by addressing this choice?” and focus on aspects that aren’t easily quantifiable.»
Trending
These links are currently making the rounds in Better Living on Refind.
Deliberate doubt: the art of questioning our assumptions
Deliberate doubt is the practice of actively questioning our beliefs and assumptions. It is about suspending our certainty and letting go of our preconceived notions in order to explore new ideas and…
«Ask yourself questions like: What if I’m wrong about this? What evidence do I have to support my belief? What are the alternative explanations?»
5 ways to set yourself up for success
Any success formula must start with your values and life goals. Here are five ways to find those and set yourself up for success.
«Success isn’t a condition without failure; it’s the condition of overcoming failure and improving.»
6 tips to help you be a better human now
Podcast host Chris Duffy spends his days talking to a diverse group of experts in order to answer one question: “How can I be a better human?” Here’s the advice that has really st…
In Defense of the Unoptimized Life
Give yourself the space to be inspired
«we get so caught up in the daily grind, in the pursuit of the next step of the ladder, that we miss the point of being.»
7 Self-Reflection Questions to Create Your Own Happiness This Year
Instead of setting resolutions, I pondered a few questions to help me create my own happiness this year based on what matters most to me.
«6. What are three actions you’ll take to achieve each of these goals?»
Short Articles
Short on time? Check out these useful short articles in Better Living—all under 10 minutes.
Self-Motivation: how to build a reward system for yourself
Building a reward system for self-motivation is a powerful way to boost your productivity, reducing the need to rely on intrinsic motivation to complete the work you need (and want) to do. However,…
«A reward does not need to be expensive. If it appeals to you, then you will be motivated to reach your goal so that you can treat yourself.»
How to Be Happier Without Really Trying
The ancient philosopher Epicurus had some tips on how to be happier. And they're all about having fun. Here's what he had to say...
«Seek “Enough”: Satisfaction beats success. What we call “success” is often just slavery to Corrosive desires»
Ideas That Changed My Life
You spend years trying to learn new stuff but then look back and realize that maybe like 10 big ideas truly changed how you think and drive most of what you believe. Brent Beshore recently listed the…
How to Process Negative Feedback
Tips for dealing with criticism—when you agree with it, and when you don’t
«In these more educational environments, where no one expects me to be perfect, negative feedback is reframed. It’s not criticism; it’s teaching.»
Bayesian search: A simple rule to find stuff you've lost
Bayesian search is based on a simple probability rule. It can help you find stuff you've lost, like your phone, wallet — or nuclear submarine.
«The point is that each time you acquire more information, the probability density function changes»
Long Articles
These are some of the most-read long-form articles in Better Living.
Building Habits Strategies To Try (After Failing To Build Habits In The Past)
Check these building habits strategies if you had problems with making habits stick in the past. They are especially useful for busy adults.
«Try to embrace the 2-day rule. That is, you never miss a habit you want in your life twice in a roll.»
Life Is Hard. And That’s Good
When the going gets tough, the tough get philosophical.
«The right perspective in which to think about grief is that it is a manifestation of persisting love,”»
The Top 10 Insights from the “Science of a Meaningful Life” in 2022
Our team names the most provocative and influential findings published during this past year.
«Our findings suggest that simply appreciating one’s experiences can foster a rich sense of meaning and perhaps shore up confidence that life has been and will be worth living,»
Things could be better
Eight studies reveal a (possibly universal) bias in human imagination
«We figured that judgments must be built on comparisons: to say that something is bad is really to say that it’s worse than something else.»
Labeling Yourself is Keeping You Down, Do This Instead
Recently, after I gave a virtual presentation on my book Indistractable, a listener wrote something in the Zoom chat that drove me bonkers: “This is great but wouldn’t work for me. I’m a Gemini.”…
Thought Leaders
We monitor hundreds of thought leaders, influencers, and newsletters in Better Living, including:
Mark Manson
3x #1 NYTimes bestselling author. Best known for F-Bombs and uncomfortable truths. Giving life advice that doesn't suck since 2008.
Tim Ferriss
Author of 5 #1 NYT/WSJ bestsellers, early-stage investor (http://angel.co/tim), Tim Ferriss Show podcast (900M+ downloads), founder of http://saiseifoundation.org
James Clear
Author of the #1 NYT bestseller Atomic Habits (http://atomichabits.com). I write about building better habits.
Elemental
Wellness, backed aggressively by science. A new publication from @Medium. Find us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/elemental
The Cut
Style. Self. Culture. Power. Find us on Instagram: @TheCut Subscribe to New York for more: http://nymag.com/subscribe
Publications
We monitor hundreds of publications, blogs, newsletters, and news sources in Better Living, including:
Ness Labs
The learning community for ambitious knowledge workers. Join us to think better, learn faster, and work happier: http://nesslabs.com/membership 🧠✨
LifeHack
LifeHack helps busy people get the most out of their lives in the shortest amount of time, through actionable, step-by-step systems that multiply results.
Aeon+Psyche
Aeon is a magazine of ideas and culture. Psyche is our sister magazine focused on the human condition. Visit http://aeon.co and http://psyche.co for more.
SELF
Wellness you can trust. #TeamSELF
Leo Babauta
Creator of Zen Habits. Training in uncertainty. Zen student, vegan, dad, husband.
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Who are the thought leaders in Better Living?
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