29 Habits and Practices that Improved My Life in my 30s

Small things and big things that have changed my life for the better. Love them. Mean it.

I’ve always been someone who loved and cherished routines. But in my 30s, I really, really leaned into it. Cultivating habits and savoring routines became a way to appreciate the little things and ensure I was making time for things that would fill my cup.

When I went to write this list I had no idea it would turn into 29 items. And I’m quite sure if I let it sit in my drafts any longer the list would grow. Writing this list was cathartic and inspiring all in one and I encourage you to write your own (share it with me if you’d like?!)

1. Meditation

I tried meditation off and on in my late 20s and early 30s. But it wasn’t until I started attempting to do 5 minutes every morning in the last several years that I really, really reaped the benefits of it. 5 minutes became 10 and then 15 and the minutes, instead of feeling torturous, became freeing and passed quickly. This practice (and it is, indeed, a practice still) has helped my anxiety immensely. Doing it in the morning is the best way to level set my mind and help my focus.

2. A Morning Routine

I love having a morning routine. It is worth getting up early for and I will say, if you’re not a morning person, having a morning routine you look forward to may very well change that.

3. Daily Pages

An essential part of my weekday morning routine is daily pages. I’ve been doing a page in my Five Minute Journal every M-F for nearly a decade now (…don’t get me started on the benefits of a gratitude practice!!!) I also read a page from The Daily Stoic and in 2024 I added a daily page of The Pivot Year. The opportunity to reflect and practice gratitude set the tone for my day with more calm.

4. Daily To Do Lists

I’m a Type-A over-achiever so checking things off a list makes me feel accomplished and gives me a sense of pride. But in 2020 I moved from one long to do list to micro, daily to-do lists.

Instead of trying to get everything on my to-do list done every day (and often failing), nowadays I create a to-do list for the following day or each day of the week with my *most important* To-Dos and the things I’d like to achieve for my personal life, too.

Ideally, they go in order of the most important tasks to the least important and this allows me to stay focused on what I really need to get done day to day. Whatever is at the bottom of the list, if it doesn’t get done, it doesn’t get done. I just move those items to the following day’s to-do list if it’s still of importance. I keep these daily to-do lists on my Notes app and check them off as they get done throughout the day.

I also add things like Five Minute Journal, read The Daily Stoic, read The Pivot Year, take vitamins and drink a green juice to my list as I’ve found I am twice as likely to achieve each of these good habits if I have a checkmark next to them on the list.

It has completely revolutionized how I tackle my work and life to dos and makes me feel a lot less overwhelmed day to day.

5. No Snooze Button

It doesn’t benefit you I learned early on in my 30s. And in skipping it entirely, I have opened myself up to become a morning person and cherish my morning rituals even more.

6. Traveling with Medicine

We all eventually adopt various habits of our parents, don’t we? My mom was always the most prepared traveler. No matter what came up, she had a solution in her carry on. Nowadays I travel like her when it comes to having medicines for every ailment. It’s meant having a solution right in my hotel room most times vs. harried trips to the pharmacy. (Not to mention avoiding the stress when said pharmacy operates in a foreign language…)

7. Drinking My Greens

I’m not the healthiest eater and I’ve accepted that. My antidote is to have a green juice a day and not stress about not having a salad every day. I only drink all veggie juices and when I’m really on my A-game I add a spoonful of Nanogreens.

8. Lots of Water + Reusable Water Bottles

Toting around an annoyingly large 32oz water bottle for the last 8+ years has been a game changer for me. The straw makes me drink a lot more and on average I consume nearly 100oz of water a day. I reaped the benefits in my skin and overall health. I skip flavored waters entirely and just focus on good ol’ filtered tap water.

9. A.M. and P.M. Skincare Routines without Fail

My line of work had me testing out loads of beauty products for the better part of the last two decades. But in my late 30s I have instead really honed in on skin care rituals that I do every single morning and every single evening without fail. My skin is so much better for it and has allowed me to stay away from expensive treatments (for now) like Botox and fillers. My Beauty Holy Grails.

(Full current skincare breakdown coming soon to The Noteworthy Edit!!)

10. Saying No to Things I Don’t Want To Do

Our time is our greatest, most precious resource. And I spent a lot of my 20s chasing time with others that may not have been worthwhile or reciprocated. In my 30s I began exercising the muscle of saying no more. And.without.apologizing. *This* is key. If I don’t want to do it, I don’t.

11. Investing in My Relationships

Relatedly, saying no more has allowed me to invest in and show up in more meaningful ways to those closest in my life.

12. Being Less Precious

I was raised in a household where everything was treated as precious. It meant a chip in a cup or a plan not going as meant to would often cause an eruption. It contributed to my anxiety as an adult and caused me to treat things and situations the same for a very long time. I feel in my 30s I have finally broken the cycle. If something breaks, it breaks. It can often be replaced and if not, it’s not the worst thing that could happen. When things don’t go to plan…it.is.OK. You’ll get there eventually.

13. Prioritizing Supporting Female Founded Businesses

I stepped into entrepreneurship in my 30s and it has forever changed me. I have founded three successful businesses and retired one to focus on the two. The people who support me - especially those who do so loudly and publicly within their own communities - have made a huge difference in my brands. And I am forever grateful. I always try to pay it forward by supporting other female founded businesses I admire. My entire team is female and I consistently try and use my platforms to support other female founded small businesses.

14. Working Out Because I Can; Not Because I Feel I Have To

I spent my teenage years and 20s stressed about my appearance and used non-stop workouts and fitness classes to fuel appearance-based value. Nowadays I really try and focus on how I want my body to feel and do so expressing gratitude for an able body that can do the workouts that fuel me and my mental health.

15. Hot Yoga

Relatedly, it never ceases to amaze me how much you want to workout once you find one that feeds your soul. For me that was hot yoga. I discovered it in my 30s and it remains not only a habit I love, but a ritual I crave. Hot yoga feels like wringing myself out. Like sweating out all my sins. This weekly habit is absolute medicine for me.

Find the workout you love and always make time for it. Make it a non-negotiable in your week.

16. Sending Snail Mail

My first job was in a stationery store and my favorite habit to grow out this (extremely impactful job) was the beauty of a letter in the mail. Forever you’ll find me sending thank you notes and birthday cards and little notes just because. It’s a little habit I always set time aside to do.

17. Sunday Self Care

Sundays are cherished by me. I rarely make a lot of plans on Sundays, I savor cooking a new recipe in my kitchen on Sunday evenings. I light candles and I do self care in the form of face masks and my NuFace and Whitestrips.

18. The One Minute Rule

I’ve been living by this rule the past two years and it’s made me so much more effective as I move throughout a day.

The one minute rule essentially says that if you think of something to do and you can do it in less than one minute, do it.

Think putting away your shoes by the door. Putting back something you used, etc. etc. It has improved my mental health a lot around my home and I think has in fact helped me be more productive.

19. Inbox Pausing

If you’re like me, you find it hard to turn off at the end of the day. I remain obsessive about checking new emails till pretty much I go to bed at night. But for my work email inboxes, four years ago I installed the Boomerang plugin and started pausing them at the end of the day. It was one of the best things to happen to me to lower my anxiety.

It also ensures I’m not getting stressed or distracted by work on the weekends in particular. If someone needs me urgently, they know how to reach me and it won’t be by my inbox anyhow.

20. Browser Tab Grouping

Running two businesses and being a Chrome tab-addict (out of sight…out of mind and all that…) grouping tabs per business was hugely helpful for my productivity. Never going back!!

21. Curated Lighting

Can I just say how much better it is when your lighting in your home is curated? I’m someone that’s very sensitive to light and therefore having all the lightbulbs in my home set to colors and temperatures that I personally selected to set the right scene has been amazing. Not to mention they are all controlled by voice prompts! I never spend any time going around turning on and off lamps. It’s brilliant.

22. Social Media App Time Limits

I love the feature on the Apple iPhone that lets you lock your social media apps and give yourself time limits. Doing so has majorly cut down on distraction and allowed increased productivity each week day for me. Do I override them from time to time? Of course. But in the end, the reminders serve as good alerts that I need to move on with my time.

Years ago I stopped sharing Stories and Posts on Instagram on the weekends and stopped responding to DMs from Friday evening to Sunday evening. I felt I really needed two days where I was not on demand. So, if you DM me on a weekend you will get a reply (if it warrants one) on Monday. No exceptions.

23. No computer in bed

I instilled this rule for myself when I became self-employed and am proud to say I have stuck with it. Work finally had a beginning and an end and I was able to install normal sleeping hours by not being tempted by my laptop. My laptop is not allowed near my bed when the work day is done.

24. Therapy

Pretty self explanatory but I’ve been going to therapy off and on since I was 17. Carving out time to unpack fears, shame, old traumas and insecurities…it’s worth every minute and worthy every penny. Finding a good therapist you feel safe with and feel is productive for your mental health is so worthwhile. (And takes time!!)

25. Phone Calls > Texting

Pick.up.the.phone! Phone call catch ups with those in your life are so worthwhile. Someone’s birthday? Call them! It’s so much more rewarding (for both parties) than firing off a text.

26. Knowing My Preferred Liquors

Life’s too short for well drinks when you can afford (and know) the liquors you like. Order your drinks with the liquor you prefer!

27. Computer Glasses

I’d like to personally thank the doctor at Warby Parker I saw years ago who told me I would benefit from a pair of “computer glasses” that I can (and should!) wear every day when in front of my laptop (or phone) for hours on end. Doing so has helped me immensely diminish my eye strain and screen-induced headaches.

28. Having Things to Look Forward To

I think we all felt this deeply in 2020, right? When we didn’t have anything to look forward to like vacations or group hang outs or birthday parties. But even then we found ways to find small things to look forward to. Zooms with our friends near and far, cooking a favorite meal, baking something delicious, Marco Polo video messages, etc. It was an important reminder I’ve carried with me that we should always have something on our calendar to look forward to and I make a habit of doing so. It’s often not something big like a trip but also carving out time for a solo date or booking a facial. Something I can hold on my calendar that I know will leave me feeling fulilled.

29. Betting On Myself

And the very best habit I’ve honed in on? Betting on myself. Trusting my intuition. TAKING. THE. RISKS!!!

My whole life changed in my 30s when I leaned into betting on myself. My life, my work, everything is more fulfilling than ever before.

I would love to know…what habits and practices are most worthwhile to you?

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