HIGH QUALITY OF LIFE: INDICATORS AND 10 TIPS TO ACHIEVE IT - GEOGRAFÍA - 2025

The quality of life is a concept related to health and living standards which can be defined as "the welfare, happiness and satisfaction that a person at a given time."

It can be evaluated and measured, and strategies and interventions can be developed to improve it. Its main indicators are health, personal well-being, happiness and personal adjustment.

4 Indicators of high quality of life

The quality of human life is a concept that is used to determine the level of well-being, happiness, satisfaction that a person has at a given time.

A high quality of life would consist of a good physical, psychological and social functioning, which allows a good adaptation of the individual to their environment so that they do not have impediments to live properly.

Thus, it is a concept that encompasses many others, of which the most important are health, well-being, happiness and personal adjustment.

Health

It would be defined as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not just the absence of disease or illness"

Health is not considered an abstract state but a means, which allows us to lead an individual, socially and economically productive life, and therefore allows us to have quality of life.

Personal welfare

It refers to the global assessment of the person's condition. Like the quality of life it concerns the present of the individual (current state). However, this concept requires future security.

That is, an individual will have personal well-being if all or most of their functions are in an optimal state in the present and the continuity of this correct functioning is ensured.

Happiness

It could be defined as personal satisfaction based on the specific goals and desires of the individual.

In this concept, the objectives and expectations of the person are very important. Happiness is a concept that would explain a good part of the quality of life.

Personal adjustment

It could be defined as the harmony of the different facets of the person with their environment.

This concept makes special reference to the relationship between subject and environment. An individual has personal adjustment if all aspects of his life function properly, in accordance with one another.

Thus, quality of life is a concept that encompasses many facets of our life and that ultimately refers to the richness of all our vital areas. Therefore, in order to improve the quality of life, it is necessary to work on 3 different aspects: psychological component, physical component and social component.

Anyone who wants to have quality of life and achieve a state of satisfaction, happiness and well-being, has to take an active role, work on these 3 aspects and never expect to receive these things passively.

And is that the quality of life is not received or found by chance. Well-being, happiness or personal satisfaction are created by oneself during the path of their existence.

10 strategies to increase the quality of life

1-Analyze your emotions and thoughts

Everything we do during the day, the things we think about, how we do it and what feelings we have, has a direct effect on our well-being and our quality of life.

In other words: depending on how we interpret, think and do things, we will be better or worse. The way we function is the first requirement for our well-being.

Therefore, do not limit yourself to performing automatically and work to improve those aspects that are not quite right.

Find out what your habitual thoughts are for a whole day. Are they always positive? Are they mostly negative? Do they always respond to logic or are they guided by your emotions and feelings?

There is no magic formula for thinking that causes you well-being, but if you do the exercise of reconsidering the way you think you will already have a lot going for you.

Keep in mind that positive emotions and prolonged moments in which you have a good mood will increase your quality of life and your satisfaction.

Look inside yourself and analyze if your way of thinking and the feelings you usually have are facing this goal, if they are not, try to change your way of approaching things.

2-Analyze your activities

Our behavior always has a direct effect on our thoughts and feelings. Thus, it will not be enough to analyze how you think and what feelings you usually have, but at the same time you will have to do the same with your actions.

Analyze your schedule of activities that you have during a week. Write down what you do, how you do it, the reason and the feeling that each activity produces. Are they all justified, do they have a clear objective and do they reward you in something?

Does the number of activities you do fit your occupation needs? Would you like to do more or less? Are there any that you would like to stop doing or are there activities that you would like to do but don't do?

To achieve the state of quality of life, it is very important that you like your life and feel comfortable with what you do every day.

Obviously, you will not be able to create an activity agenda that is tailored to the millimeter with your wishes, since we all have a series of obligations that do not allow us to live as we please.

However, it is very important that you make sure that each of your activities has a specific objective, brings you some kind of benefit, and that your schedule is fully adapted to your aspirations.

3-Review your goals

We all need to have goals in our lives, so if reading this doesn't come up with any personal goals that you currently have, the first thing you have to do is include one in your life.

Goals don't have to be very long-term dreams or goals, goals are whatever you want to achieve in your life.

Keeping your current job, taking care of your relationship with your relatives, getting your children to receive a good education or continuing to see your childhood friend with whom you have such a good relationship are already objectives, and very important.

I recommend making a list of all the personal goals you have and make sure that:

• They are specific, measurable, achievable and relevant to you.
• They have defined deadlines and are not on the air without any kind of organization.
• You have mechanisms to achieve them, you know what those mechanisms are and you are executing them.
• The fact of having them gives you some kind of satisfaction and well-being.

If your objectives meet these 4 premises, you will be focusing your life in an appropriate way.

4-Work your conscience

By working on consciousness, I refer to performing those actions that allow you to increase your mental clarity and increase your confidence in the actions you perform.

To do so, I propose these two activities:

Practice meditation

Meditation activities such as yoga or Mindfulness activities have innumerable benefits for both your body and your mind.

If you are able to control your consciousness, modulate your concentration and direct your attention appropriately, you will have greater clarity of ideas, which will produce personal satisfaction.

Manage your emotions

Don't automate what you feel and the emotions you have during the day. Support them, think about them, how they were produced, why, and what has been your reaction.

If you do, you will become aware of the feelings and emotions you have during the day and you will increase your ability to manage them and improve your emotional state.

5-Promote your health

Once our psychological aspect has been worked on, the next step would be to work on our health. If you develop a disease or do not have an optimal state of health, your quality of life will be greatly impaired.

That is why you have to take a leading role and carry out the necessary activities to promote your physical and mental health:

• Visit the doctor periodically to prevent the development of any type of disease.
• Eat in a healthy and balanced way to promote your health, avoid eating problems and improve your personal image.
• Exercise frequently to improve the state of your body, prevent physical problems, and increase your mental well-being, improve your mood, your self-image and your self-esteem.

6-Get adequate rest

In the same way, in order to function properly, you must give your body the rest it needs. Try never to sleep less than 7 hours or overexpose your body to extremely aggressive physical activities for a long time.

Getting adequate rest will provide you with multiple physical benefits: immune system, blood pressure, heart rate, metabolism, etc. And it will allow you to achieve a state of mind of greater tranquility and well-being.

7-Avoid risky behaviors

Promoting your health with the activities mentioned above and getting adequate rest will not guarantee good health if you do not avoid risky behaviors.

So:

• Even if you eat in a healthy and healthy way, try not to eat foods that can be harmful to health such as excess salt, sugar or fried foods with excess fat.
• Even if you do physical activity, try not to lead an extremely sedentary life. Try to keep your lifestyle active and don't spend long hours sitting or lying down.
• Avoid hygiene problems and clean yourself properly daily.
• Avoid toxic habits, the consumption of substances such as alcohol, tobacco or other drugs.

8-Take care of your personal relationships

Finally, the last aspect that we must work on to improve our quality of life is our social environment. For this, the first requirement is to have enriching personal relationships. Do not abandon your relationships, whether they are colleagues, friends or family.

Invest time in taking care of them since nothing can provide you with a more rewarding stimulus than that which a person precious to you can provide.

Spend time with your children, organize family events, meet your friends often, be concerned about the people around you, and give them help whenever they need it.

9-Enjoy your surroundings

It is very important that you are able to enjoy the environment in which you live. Do not always stay locked at home and go outside often. Our environment can be a source of very high gratification and you must get used to benefiting from it.

Have contact with nature whenever you can, take a quiet walk in the mountains or in the park behind your house. If you live in the city, invest time and effort in visiting the most beautiful areas, look for which corners have a special beauty and go see them.

Sometimes we think that the area in which we live cannot provide us with any kind of positive stimulus since we see it daily, but this is not the case. Learn to see things around you with different eyes to find their beauty.

If you have nothing to do one afternoon, I recommend that you go out for a walk instead of lying on the couch.

10-Strengthen solidarity

Good actions boost energy, increase feelings of well-being and personal satisfaction, improve self-esteem, and often bring happiness. So try to carry out this premise: "I'll do something good for others whenever I can."

It is not about spending your life helping anyone you may meet, but it is about maintaining a positive attitude towards others, and providing help to people you trust whenever they need it.

References

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