Happiness is a mosaic made of tiny, positive habits that color our days with joy.

For the past two months, I’ve worked toward incorporating five-minute habits into my life that have positively and profoundly impacted my mind, soul, and body.

The need to incorporate these habits came from a period of deep sadness and distress. It was a time in my life when I felt like emotions ruled, and I finally decided that I was going to take back control.

For me, this looked like scheduling out my morning and evening routine and incorporating new habits to center my mind, soul, and body.

Each day I wake up, I have a purpose in successfully completing these tasks, which allows me to start my day on the right foot and end each day on a great note.

The best part is that these habits are only 5 minutes each, so it wasn’t hard to incorporate them into my day or maintain them. They were easy to integrate into my pre-established routines and seamlessly blended with the other habits I had.

My need to transform my life, in combination with the fact that these habits only took five minutes of my day, created the perfect storm. I found purpose and happiness in maintaining these habits and saw the benefits each provided for my mind, body, and soul.

If you’re on a time budget and looking for a way to transform your life, then consider embracing these five-minute habits.

My Mind

I started meditating every morning for five minutes, right before I walk out the door to go to work.

I’ve always wanted to be someone who meditates, but I never intentionally tried to, mainly because I engaged in the practice of prayer so frequently.

I realized that prayer and meditation, though similar, have key differences that can impact your life and the health of your mind uniquely.

I’ve also turned to meditation as a coping mechanism if I feel an anxiety attack coming on or if I start to overthink.

Beginning my day with meditation and deep breathing exercises allows me to center myself and calm my mind before taking on the challenges of the day.

I’ve noticed my ability to think more clearly, separate my emotions from reality, and make logical decisions.

This video is the guided morning meditation I do every morning. I’ve done it for the past two months and enjoy the prompts given in this video. It’s not intimidating, I promise. Give it a shot!

My Soul

Another habit I’ve incorporated is journaling every night before I go to bed. Admittedly, this habit may take a little longer than five minutes, depending on how much I have to say, but it usually averages less than 10 minutes.

I used to journal a lot when I was younger, obsessed with the idea that someone could use the journals for my future biography. LOL.

Now, I journal to connect with my soul and free my mind.

At this point in my life, I’ve learned that I’m a verbal processor when it comes to my emotions. The longer I let my emotions remain in my head, the worse they manifest.

Because I spend a lot of time by myself, I don’t always have the opportunity to verbally process my emotions with someone, so I resorted to the next best thing- journaling.

The value gained from journaling has been twofold thus far.

First and foremost, physically writing in a notebook forces me to slow my thoughts and learn to pace them in a healthy way. After all, my hand can only write so fast, and it’s certainly slower than the speed at which my mind runs!

Secondly, it’s provided a safe space for me to process my thoughts and serves as an alternative to speaking with someone about them. It’s a way to free my mind and allow the space to process thoughts and emotions in a productive manner.

If you don’t like the idea of journaling, try doing a five-minute daily podcast where you record a voice memo of you talking through your day or any relevant thoughts you’ve been having. You may find that simply getting thoughts out of your mind allows you to better deal with your them and emotions.

My Body

I really love working out and have a 176-day workout streak at the time of writing this post. I enjoy my time in the gym and the way it not only physically pushes me but also mentally challenges me.

Beyond the typical 40-minute workout I do after work, I’ve started doing a yoga flow right when I wake up each morning.

It only takes 6.5 minutes to complete and allows me to stretch my body and get it moving after a night’s rest.

Not only does it prime my body for a long day of sitting at a desk and working in Corporate America, but it helps set the pace for my morning.

When I start my morning with a yoga flow, it gives me the space to think about my day and how I want it to go. It allows me to breathe the day in before it knocks the wind out of me.

I used to start my day by waking up and immediately heading to the bathroom in a frenzy to get ready for work as fast as I could. But starting with yoga has not only changed the course of my morning but also changed the course of my day.

It doesn’t have to be a yoga flow- you can stretch or take a short walk around the block when you wake up. But starting your day with movement promotes a strong and healthy mind. After all, an object in motion stays in motion!

The Power of Five-Minute Habits

The true power of habits lies in their ability to be maintained and thus transform your life.

It’s not about how long it takes to do something. It’s about your ability to maintain it.

You don’t need to start a workout habit by going to the gym for an hour every day. You can start with just 10 minutes of exercise per day and build from there…or just maintain 10 minutes.

So, whether it’s a 5-minute habit or a 50-minute habit, the value is not held in the duration but rather in the sustainability and the ways in which you let the habit transform your life.

Don’t undervalue something just because it doesn’t take you a long time to do it.

Real Talk

I never expected so much impact to come from 15 minutes of my day, stemming from 3, 5-minute habits.

The benefit, just like investing, comes in the ability of these habits to have compounding value.

These habits, although low-cost, compound to have a lifetime of positive effects.

So, try taking on a five-minute habit and see how it transforms your life, and know that sometimes in life, the sweetest things don’t take a lot of time.