Embrace the art of quiet living with 5 simple practices that are easy to adopt and stick to. This post will tell you how to live a quiet life without compromising the essential parts of your routine.
TikTok is full of viral trends ranging from wellness to quirky lifestyle choices, and for the sake of keeping my life simple, I try to stay away from most of them.
But every now and then, something soothing emerges that speaks straight to my human soul.
The “quiet life” is one such unique trend that has caught my eye.
True to its name, it emphasizes the most underlooked fact of life:
Humans thrive under minimalism and simple living, and a busy life does nothing but chip at the peace of mind.
We are currently in an age of multiple lives.
You have a work life, a social media presence, and a personal routine to maintain – all of which are miraculously supposed to stay out of loops with each other.
You have to plan, organize, and keep yourself productive, and when either of those things is not working out, you are supposed to feel guilty about it.
Honestly, I don’t know how to keep up with this complicated arrangement, and I’ve realized that I don’t want to.
I am one tiny human living in a large world, and I don’t want to spend my days trying to keep up with the demands of something that drains my precious mental energy.
I would rather chuck out everything that makes my life chaotic and slow down to go at my own pace.
If you can relate, then the concept of a quiet life will be a breath of fresh air for you.
Take a deep breath, sit back, and relax while I take you through the 5 simple practices to live a quiet life.
5 Key Practices For A Quiet Life
1. Keep Your Mornings Slow
I know a fast-paced morning routine is a scene right out of a girl-boss movie, but it’s not the way to build a quiet life.
How you spend your morning sets the tone for your entire day.
Rushing through your morning can elevate stress levels while keeping things slow allows you to begin your day with a calm and composed mind.
Hello, mindfulness! And bye-bye, morning anxiety.
It can feel good to stick to a dozen healthy morning habits, but if that doesn’t float your boat, focus on completing 4 to 5 morning rituals that ground you in your present moment.
This could include reading a book, writing a few morning pages, or stretching your body.
You also don’t have to stick to a permanent morning routine. There is always an option to keep things interesting by indulging in different habits each morning.
Sense the tone of your mood and give yourself whatever you want.
Most mornings, I feel good running an ice roller down my face, but there are days when I just want to listen to a podcast while painting my nails.
I realize that doesn’t exactly scream an ideal morning ritual, but it helps me slow down and practice mindfulness.
At the end of your morning, your heart should be full of contentment instead of anxiety that often comes from rushing yourself.
So, aim for this feeling while re-creating your mornings. You will not regret this change, I promise.
2. Read More Books
Reading is hands-down my favorite thing in the world.
When I am happy, I read. When I am distressed, I read. And when I am feeling stuck in life (you got it right), I read.
It dulls the chatter of my mind like nothing else and helps me find peace in my own company.
Reading is more than just a hobby. It’s an immersive experience that requires focus and attention.
You get to channel your restless energies in one place and receive contentment in return.
The whole world could be running around you, but when you’re reading, you don’t worry about having to keep up with anybody.
You just allow yourself to be, which is one of the key habits to live a quiet life. Read every day if you want to be wiser and nurture your heart.
Whenever you can, romanticize your reading experience by lighting some scented candles, sipping tea, or heading outside to read in a park.
The type of books you read is important here. A distressing crime thriller might not be what you want to pick if you’re looking to calm your thoughts.
It’s worth exploring different genres and authors to find what resonates most with you and contributes to the sense of quiet you’re seeking.
These days, I am obsessed with books that make me feel cozy.
I have been gorging contemporary romance, classics, and fantasy as if there’s no tomorrow. My heart feels lighter and my days are better because of it.
3. Be Comfortable With Doing Less
There might be days when you set a goal to work 10/24 non-stop and are actually able to do it without getting tired.
But most days, your productivity graph might not look so polished, and that’s okay.
We are living in an age where being super organized and productive is highly in demand, but the rise of wellness awareness has been just as high.
I am seeing more and more people talking about going with the flow rather than living by a strict routine.
By giving yourself permission to do less, you will be liberating yourself from the need to be a perfectionist.
There will be more space and time for joyous activities in your life, which you absolutely need to build a quiet life.
Of course, you wouldn’t want to compromise your goals here, and for that, focusing on the important things only can be helpful.
I am talking about setting the right priorities, doing some healthy self-reflection now and then, and getting rid of anything that simply doesn’t align with your personality anymore.
If you are able to do 50 burpees today, that’s great! But if tomorrow calls for a mindful walk instead of your usual cardio routine, go outside and get it done.
Focus on the quality of your work rather than the quantity and you’ll never find yourself being harsh on yourself.
More isn’t necessarily better anymore, and it’s high time to start living by this truth.
4. Set Your Boundaries
When I think of creating a quiet life, boundaries are the first thing that springs to mind.
In order to separate yourself from the noise around you, you need to set some healthy boundaries that you can use to maintain a strong distance.
This doesn’t mean alienating yourself from the society. It just means you know when to say yes, when to say no, and how to mingle the right way.
Maybe you enjoy going to parties but also tend to overdo yourself. Well, to live a quiet life would mean knowing when to stop and which Saturday parties to skip out of.
Spend time with the people you love, and be okay with distancing yourself from a crowd that doesn’t appeal to you.
Your social media boundaries need to be strong too.
Follow people and influencers who remind you of your purpose and make you feel fluffy, and click on the unfollow button if a profile makes you anxious.
You are not rejecting anyone by doing this, it’s simply you creating harmony in your online space so that your social media experience is always good.
Sometimes, you might also need to create boundaries between different versions of yourself.
When you are mentally exhausted after a long day at work, the professional you might need to step back and your feel-good side might need to come out.
Know when to be productive, and when to retreat to your room for an hour of Netflix or some mindful journaling.
P.S.: I hope you’re not envisioning your boundaries as solid grey walls. For a quiet life, fluffy clouds will work just fine for your imaginary boundaries.
5. 10 Minutes Of Pure Mindfulness
Mindfulness is one of the basic rules to live a quiet life.
Being aware of your present and not dwelling in your past or thinking about your future can give you the blissful solitude that you are lacking at this moment.
But mindfulness is hard to live by if you’re not practicing it for at least 10 minutes every day.
Yes, I am talking about meditation – the centuries-old practice that wellness experts swear by for a balanced life.
When I was just starting out with my wellness journey, I read about meditation in every other self-help blog that I came across.
At one point, I just started skipping past the points where the writer would be discussing this practice at length until I realized that I hadn’t even once considered sitting down and actually doing meditation.
Fast forward to now – I have become one of those annoying writers who is always harping on the benefits of meditation.
I do it because it’s brought a welcome stillness to my life and completely changed my mental health, and I want the same to happen for anyone who might be looking for the same change.
We are creatures of habit and familiarity, us humans. Anything new scares us.
And while meditation is a tranquil and peaceful art, it can unveil the kind of bliss that we’re not used to.
But if you’ve been finding it hard to ground yourself to your reality and tap into mindfulness, meditation is just what you need.
Spare 10 minutes each day for this – Find a quiet spot, close your eyes, and focus on your breaths.
Simple to do and easy to stick to. It’ll be troublesome initially – you might not be used to being by yourself like this.
But these few minutes of silence will help you master the art of living a quiet life, and I mean it when I say it – Nothing will be the same again (in a really, really good way.)
Say Yes To A Quiet Life
Embracing a quiet life doesn’t imply retreating from the world.
Rather, it’s a deliberate choice to cultivate tranquility, mindfulness, and balance in the midst of life’s hustle and bustle.
Use the five practices discussed in this post to make your life quieter and more peaceful.
Take it easy, and allow yourself to be free of expectations that limit your state of life.
It’s going to be a beautiful journey of self-discovery, a dance between embracing stillness within and navigating the world around you with grace and intention.
Read next: 11 Habits That Affect Your Mental Health Negatively
Enjoyed the post? Share your thoughts in the comment box below. I’d love to know some of your personal rituals that help you live a quiet life.
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