Do you tend to feel more anxious at the end of the weekend? We call that “Sunday Night Anxiety” or “SNA” (pronounced snaah) in my family.

For me, SNA used to roll in on Sunday evenings like the San Francisco fog, especially when I knew I was facing a pile of undone tasks at work Monday morning.

To combat SNA, I’ve found that all I have to do is take time on Friday to update my task list and–here is the key–make a plan for how and when I will complete all those undone tasks. I learned to do this from Roy Baumeister’s review of research related to what psychologists call “the Zeigarnik effect”–the way that unfinished task items and unmet goals tend to pop repeatedly into our minds, causing stress, or SNA. You don’t actually have to complete a task for it to stop causing you anxiety, but you do have to tell your brain when you will do it.

Take Action: When you feel your mental task-list start to blink red, stop and write everything you need to get done down, even the tiny or not-urgent things (e.g. “find a recipe for kale salad”). Then, make a plan for when you will do each item. Voila! Many people feel better immediately.

Join the Discussion: Do you suffer from SNA? What makes it better for you? Comment below!

You probably know that yawning is contagious among chimpanzees, dogs, humans, and even possibly fish. Did you yawn just seeing the photo, below?

We think of yawning as a bit rude (am I boring you?) and as a sign of exhaustion. But the primary purpose of yawning is actually to cool off our brains, and when contagious, researchers believe it is a sign of empathetic tendencies and social awareness.

And the benefits of yawning go well beyond that! According to neuroscientist Andrew Newberg, yawning can improve your memory, stimulate alertness and concentration, and lower your stress. The catch: we need to yawn several times in order to really reap the benefits.

Take Action: The next time you need to help your mind focus, start yawning. The first few yawns might feel fake, but keep at it. Try watching this collection of people yawning to “catch” the desire to yawn, or learn more about the science behind yawning in the video below:

Have you heard of the “licensing effect”?

Moral licensing occurs when we behave virtuously and then “cancel out” our good deeds by doing something naughty.  Whether it’s as large as completing a major project, or as small as taking a vitamin, when we behave in line with our goals and values, ironically, we risk back-sliding.

Consciously or unconsciously, we tend to feel that healthy or virtuous activities entitle us to partake in less-good-for-us activities. Smokers will smoke more, for example, when they believe they’ve just taken a Vitamin C pill. Similarly, philanthropists tend to give away less money after they’ve been reminded of their humanitarian attributes. One study even showed that when people buy eco-friendly products, they were more likely to cheat and steal!

Instead of giving yourself a pat on the back for your own good behavior, avoid the “licensing effect” by reflecting on your goals and values rather your accomplishment. Why did you take that vitamin? What larger mission are you trying to fulfill? Questions like these can help us stay focused on what we are trying to achieve instead of sabotaging our own efforts.

Take Action: Reflect on your own behavior. Do you tend to let your moral acts — or progress made towards a goal — license less-good actions? If so, write yourself a new mantra to focus on. For example, if you are trying to give up sugar, but you notice you are more likely to eat a cookie after you’ve had a kale salad for lunch, make your post lunch mantra “I value my own health, and I eat healthfully to support it.”

Join the Discussion: Do you think you use positive behaviors to justify negative ones? Share with us by commenting below!

The sheer number of positive emotions we experience relative to negative ones affects how happy we are generally; for that reason, excitement about future events can be a great source of positive emotions. Studies show that positive anticipation can bring us as much or more pleasure than the actual event itself.

Then, after that something fun is over, we can squeeze more happiness out of it by recalling, or savoring, our favorite parts. Simply telling a co-worker or friend about something you recently enjoyed can make you feel happier, as can expressing gratitude about it.

Take Action: Plan something fun for next week, and then do something to build excitement. For example, if you are going to a football game or play with a friend, send your friend an “I’m so excited!” email, or let yourself read a review or article about the team or event.

Join the Discussion: What is your favorite way to build excitement about a future event? How do you savor the good things in your life? Share your fondest family memory from this past summer in the comments below!

If you are like me (a recovering perfectionist and over-achiever) consider taking a break from your high-productivity this week. Loads of research make it clear that unrelenting work doesn’t lead to success and it certainly doesn’t contribute to happiness. (Or health, for that matter.)

We know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that highly successful people manage their energy by working hard and then resting. They take time off and get enough sleep.

Sometimes, we need to let ourselves tinker and day dream and chat rather than produce, produce, produce.

Go ahead: Procrastinate. Linger at the water cooler. Don’t do the dishes. Take a long lunch. Answer your emails in any order you fancy. Don’t cross anything off your task list. If this isn’t your normal way of being, this might be quite uncomfortable for you. Try to breathe through the discomfort while resisting the urge to criticize your sloth-like pace. You can always put the pedal to the metal tomorrow.

Join the discussion: What’s your favorite way to procrastinate? Inspire others by commenting below.

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As a life coach, I’m a huge proponent of personal growth, and growth usually means change. Becoming happier often means reengineering a bad habit, or starting a healthy new routine (like exercise or meditation). But sometimes the best thing that we can do for our happiness is stick with an old routine.

Researchers believe that the brains in both humans and animals evolved to feel calmed by repetitive behavior, and that our daily rituals and habits are a primary way to manage stress. Ever notice that you always drive to work the same way, even though there are dozens of other routes? Or that you always put deodorant on right after you brush your hair? Each of us has hundreds of little habits that carry us through the day. The fast-paced world we live in can feel quite unpredictable, but our daily rituals can help us feel more in control, often without us ever realizing it.

Take Action: Return to routine. What daily routine or ritual did you drop this summer that you realize now provided you with a little respite of calm? What routine do you have now that you’ll stick with? Leave a comment below to inspire others.

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Have you seen the moving five minute video from StoryCorps about Danny and Annie? (If not, your happiness tip is to watch it now.)

The little love notes that Danny would leave for Annie defined their relationship. They weren’t particularly poetic, or long, or exciting. But they did the trick: they conveyed his love.

Think about his “Romantic Weather Report”: The weather out today is extremely rainy, I’ll call you at 11:20 in the morning, and I love you, I love you, I love you.

Any of us can write these letters, and when we do, the love in our life grows.

Take Action: Leave someone in your life a little love letter today. How about a note for your daughter in her lunch box? A sticky on your husband’s windshield? A text to your mom that says you’re thinking of her? You could even leave a treat for your dog and call it a love note.

Join the discussion: Tell us something memorable that someone has once written you in a little love note — or that you’ve written for someone else. Inspire others by commenting below or join the discussion on Facebook.

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You might know that your TV needs to be grounded electrically to get a clear picture, but did you know that your body also needs to be grounded for optimal health? There is some amazing research that suggests that not having direct contact with the earth’s surface electrons–in other words, not being grounded electrically–is associated with nervous system imbalances, immune system issues, chronic pain, endocrine disorders, sleep problems, and much more.

A few studies show a fairly dramatic improvement in health and pain levels–including things that profoundly affect our happiness, like the way our nervous system is activated and our stress hormone levels–just from sleeping on a grounded mat, or from standing barefoot on the earth. This review article in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health explains one such benefit:

Reduction in inflammation as a result of earthing [or grounding] has been documented with infrared medical imaging and with measurements of blood chemistry and white blood cell counts. The logical explanation for the anti-inflammatory effects is that grounding the body allows negatively charged antioxidant electrons from the Earth to enter the body and neutralize positively charged free radicals at sites of inflammation. Flow of electrons from the Earth to the body has been documented.

Humans used to walk barefoot in their homes’ dirt floors and sleep on the ground. Needless to say, we no longer live in a “grounded” environment: we wear rubber shoes, and often live several stories above ground.

I love free medicine, and that is what this is. Although we can purchase grounding mats for use indoors, we can also just get outside this summer: research shows that walking barefoot for 30-40 minutes works well.

Take action: Ground yourself this week by working in the garden, walking barefoot, or sleeping on an “earthing” bed sheet (or on the ground!). Report back: does this technique work for you? Do you feel happier and healthier after you’ve been walking around barefoot on the earth? Leave your comment below.

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