Newsletter

How I've Gained Mental Clarity

Over the past few months or so, I’ve slowly acquired tools that have helped me gain mental clarity and my mind has never felt lighter.

Here are a few tools I’m implementing into my lifestyle that will hopefully help boost your mood, creativity, and mental sharpness.

1. Gratitude Journal

I used to think gratitude & positivity was just a gaffe and had no practical meaning.

I’ll tell you right now… I was wrong.

Grab a notebook, any notebook, and scribble “Gratitude Journal” on the front.

This bound stack of paper is your new place for gratitude and will be used every single day.

Here’s what you’re gonna do:

In the morning, write down two things:

3 things you woke up grateful for.
1 thing that will make today great.

In the evening, write down two more things:

3 things that happened today.
1 thing that could’ve made today better.

Repeat this daily.

This simple act of mindfulness will change negative thoughts into positive thoughts over time.

These positive thoughts are translated into how we act and treat others.

If we wake up and carry negative thoughts with us all day, then what makes us think the universe will attract positive things towards us?

It won’t.

Positive thoughts & mindfulness attract positivity into our lives, whether that be relationships or our opportunities.

2. Talk to People

My whole life I would hate small talk and awkward conversations. Not only this but if I saw someone I knew, I wouldn’t talk to them unless they saw or approached me first.

This created a major mental burden on me that I was never aware of. I used to think it was impossible to make friends.

Up until recently, however, I’ve been reading the classic book How to Win Friends and Influence People by Daniel Carnegie

A principle in this book that rocked my world was *drum roll please* to be genuinely interested in other people.

BOOM… that’s it? Yup, and I’ve been lacking this trait for many years.

I used to think that if other people wanted to be friends with me, then they’d make the first effort to do so.

This couldn’t be further from the truth. Why? Because every single other person is thinking the EXACT same thing.

If you want to be friends with someone, BE the energy that attracts other people towards you. Why do you think the outgoing person always has the most friends?

Because they go out of their way to talk to people. They make the effort first, so the other person doesn’t have to worry about it. They’re the source of energy.

This initial step automatically creates a positive connotation towards your reputation.

Then, when you follow up with a conversation that’s genuinely interested in the other person’s world – I mean genuinely caring for what that other person has to say – then you win.

People love to talk about themselves, use that to your advantage when it comes to small talk.

The more I’ve gotten out of my comfort zone and started making a point to acknowledge people, the mental burden has lifted off me and I’m significantly happier when doing so.

3. Working on my purpose

What is my purpose you may ask?

I don’t know… yet.

It’s true form has yet to present itself to me.

BUT, I do know the direction it’s in, and health, fitness, knowledge, spirituality, and helping others achieve the greatest version of themselves bring me fulfillment.

This blog/newsletter, social media content, the gym, and becoming a PA/clinician, all revolve around the joy I feel when learning how to optimize the human body and teaching it to others.

Working on your purpose is a major factor when it comes to achieving true happiness in life (trust me, I took a happiness psychology course in undergrad).

Think about it though, the guy who’s working a mundane desk job feels like shit when his mind constantly thinks about being a chef or restaurant owner all day.

When we aren’t doing the things we want to do, everything else feels like a chore.

Yes, do what you need to do to pay the bills. But work on something you love.

Start a hobby, a side hustle, change career paths (if possible), do something that makes your eyes light up.

This is where true mental clarity comes from, it’s when you’re doing something that brings you into a flow state.

4. Prioritize diet & exercise

You thought you escaped it, didn’t you?

Yes, diet & exercise will always be key factors in not only our physical health but our mental health as well.

What we eat and do play a major role in how we perform and feel.

If you’re eating Big Macs and sluggin’ Dr. Pepper all day, then you’re going to feel sluggish and heavy.

That’s why LeBron James and pro athletes spend millions of dollars on their diet & training protocols. Because they prioritize their health and want to perform and feel their best.

Why should you do any different?

You don’t need to spend millions but take precedence over your health. You only get one body and mind, take care of it and strive for longevity.

Educate yourself.

A simple Google search will tell you various foods and vitamins that are beneficial for mental clarity and healthy brain function.

Examples?

-Fatty fish: salmon, sardines, trout, tuna. All of these contain great amounts of omega-3s which are massively beneficial to our health. In terms of the brain, omega-3s have been found in one study to increase the amount of gray matter in our brains. This gray matter contains most of the nerve cells that control decision-making, memory, and emotion (source).

-Coffee: as you may know, there’s caffeine in coffee. The caffeine and antioxidants in coffee support brain health, which supports alertness, improved mood, and sharpened concentration. Read more about the pros and cons here.

-Blueberries: besides being my all-time favorite fruit, blueberries are a superfood that brings numerous benefits to our brian. They deliver anthocyanins, a group of plant compounds with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. These act against both oxidative stress and inflammation, conditions that can contribute to brain aging and neurodegenerative diseases (source). Try sprinkling some in your cereal, smoothie, or as a snack.

5. Take a Step Back

Do you ever get to a point where the situation you’re in makes you want to scream?

*raises hand* me too.

Months ago I got rear-ended on my way to work, ultimately totaling my car.

I only owned that car for 7 months and I was furious.

But it’s in times like these that, once your frustration is let go, take a step back.

Not physically but mentally. Realize the bigger picture and the lesson that you learn from that situation.

For me, in that particular instance, I realized that the car that got totaled had been in and out of the shop the past few months, but the trade-in value was less than what I owed on the car loan, causing a financial headache.

That car crash granted me not only the chance to get a nicer car but relieved me of the headaches the last car gave me.

There will always be some form of “good” that follows after a conflicting situation.

Everything in life that happens to you is neutral.

It's how you react to those things is what determines whether it's good or bad.
— // Corey Kilroy (@kilroyfit) April 3, 2023

Everything that happens to you in life, there’s most definitely another person somewhere suffering from something worse.

Be grateful for your life, as life serves you many lessons, one way or another, that shape you into the person you are today.

6. Read

I love books.

Ever since I was a kid, there was something about finding a good book and reading it, cover to cover.

Over the past few years, however, I haven't been able to read many books for leisure due to a "busy" life as a student (you're never too busy, you're just not prioritizing).

Anyway, I recently picked up the habit again and I'm back on the obsession.

There are a plethora of benefits to reading, but one is the mass amount of reflection and insight you get from reading concepts written by other people.

The more you read, the more you learn,

New vocabulary
New ideas
New concepts

It's a never-ending cycle of "learning".

Our minds are meant to constantly learn and be put to the test.

If we're sticking to a mundane lifestyle, then our brains turn off and tell itself to stop wasting energy in keeping the neuroplasticity in our brains.

AKA, it basically shuts off. It only uses what's necessary to get you through your boring lifestyle.

Reading keeps our mind "moving". We should strive to be an ever-evolving and constantly learning individual anyway.

Learn more. Read more. Your mind will grasp onto concepts and associate your scattered thoughts with what you're learning in the book and create clarity.

In the end…

Mental clarity and sharpness are one of many things I strive to achieve. These few tools are a great starting point that’s helped me on my journey to it.

Hopefully, they help you too.

And like anything else worth achieving, it takes persistence and discipline to obtain it.