How To Be Happy In The Twin Cities
For Ali.
I was at Give and Take last month, where they focus on what people know and what they want to know. There’s a section in the middle where they ask people to share what they want to know, in the hopes that someone attending can help them. One guy said, “I want to know how to be happy in Minneapolis.” There was some awkward laughter, and a woman chimed in, “It takes five years.”
The exchange stuck with me because when I thought about it, it’s taken me about five years to get to a place where I feel like I can stay here comfortably. This is the first November that’s gone by since I moved back after college that I haven’t been aching to get the hell out. Maybe it’s just the warmer weather this year or maybe I’ve just resigned myself to sticking around, but I’d like to think it’s a little more than that. It was just at the beginning of the year that I resolved, “make the absolute best of things here, or move already.” And I think I’ve done pretty well with that.
So, some tips. This is not to say that I’m an expert, but here are some of my ideas along with tips I’ve gotten from friends. They’re always needed more in the winter, it seems.
- Get outside, even if it’s cold or dark. Staying inside often seems like a good idea, but the outdoors can make you happier, even if it’s just for a little bit.
- Dress appropriately. Whenever I think back on times where I was extremely uncomfortable, it usually revolves around being cold. Get some warm socks, wear a hat, let fashion suffer a little bit (but not too much, layers are always in!).
- Be active. I hate to be harpy about fitness, but it really does work for decreasing stress and making you feel awesome.
- Be active, while outside and appropriately dressed. The happiness trifecta. Even in winter. Snowshoes, anyone? Sledding?
- Want to make new friends? Align yourself with people who want to do the same. Not going to lie, making friends can be hard…until you find that niche of people who are on the same page. So when you meet them, and you say, “You know what would be awesome? If we _________.” And then they’re like, “Yeah, ______ would be awesome!” Now, don’t stop there. Fill in the blanks and actually make it happen, instead of simply talking about things that would be awesome.
- Get out and do things, even if you have to go alone. Because doing things beats not doing things. And there are a lot of things to do.
- Avoid rush hour traffic. If at all possible, align your commute in such a way so that you’re either not behind the wheel at all during rush hour, or not for very long. Long commutes have been proven to increase unhappiness.
- Get out, even if it’s to someplace colder. Even a weekend trip to Lutsen can be oddly restorative.
- Make the best of it. Once again, I don’t want to sound too Pollyanna or like I’m endorsing The Secret or whatever, but outlook is key. My thinking on winter is: winter can really suck, so let’s try and make it not suck as much as possible.
What are your secrets?
