Buzz
For over six months, I've been using the Exist app to monitor my activities and assess my moods, and one of the most surprising insights I gained was that how I feel about my day often hinges on how I spent the final hour.
In other words, if I spent the last hour of my day doing something that left me feeling both relaxed and happy, that positive emotion seemed to carry over to my entire day. When I recorded my day's activities and rated my mood on Exist, I tended to give my day a higher rating if I had enjoyed its end—even if the rest of it had been stressful.
Sure, part of this could be because I was rating my mood right after doing something fun. But it was fascinating to realize that ending my day with something both relaxing and enjoyable made me view the entire day in a much more positive light.
It's widely known that winding down before bed is important; just read any sleep article and it will suggest taking some time to relax before going to sleep. (I also understand that many of us are so busy that finding an extra hour to unwind can seem impossible.)
However, I noticed a distinction, at least for me, between unwinding by doing something soothing and unwinding by doing something that made me happy—like playing puzzle games on Steam or watching funny YouTube videos, which I know goes against the usual pre-bedtime advice. (Yes, I’ve got my blue light filter on.) The data shows that I have a better day when I end it with something both relaxing and enjoyable—and if I found something that made me laugh out loud, I'd often rate the whole day a 5-star day, regardless of how the rest of it went.
Then I’d close my laptop, brush my teeth, spend about twenty minutes either meditating or reading, and drift off to sleep feeling content.
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