Hygge & Intentional Living: Why is it Important?

In one of my previous blog posts, I mentioned Hygge as I was comparing it to minimalism. I do believe that both lifestyles can bring a lot of joy into your life, but the approaches are different. For this post in particular, I’ll be exploring the hygge lifestyle in more detail.

It’s no secret that we can easily get overwhelmed in our to do lists or every day tasks that need to get done, or by the amount of projects that require our full attention. Hygge can help bring us back to the present moment, and there are a lot of ways we can go about that. Reading a couple chapters of a book, taking a warm bath or shower, taking a walk in nature, lighting a candle or using an oil diffuser is just a few of the many things we can do to help us feel warm and happy on the inside.

So why is hygge important, and what makes it a big deal? To know the answer to this is to ask yourself if you’re happy with where you’re currently at in life. Do you feel comfortable? Does your home bring feelings of coziness or contentment? This lifestyle doesn’t necessarily mean you need to remove anything from your life like the minimalist lifestyle may suggest, but it does require some thought, intention and small actions to help you feel at peace.

If you’ve heard the words “intentional living” being used on social media, different blogs or YouTube, its roots are similar to the hygge lifestyle in some ways. The more you practice the act of living in the moment and being intentional with your time, the better you’ll feel about yourself and your surroundings. It doesn’t take much, but at the same time, it does require some effort.

The definition of intentional living is quite simple, but it's hard to achieve if you're looking at it from that angle of trying to obtain or achieve it like it's a one-time, objective goal. In reality here, happiness cannot be gained in the same way that we achieve other things like money, fame or other successes that we've worked hard on. It's more of a mindset shift; it's a conscious effort to rewire our subconscious thoughts about how we perceive happiness.

So for today, I want to encourage you to take five or ten minutes out of your day to do something that makes you feel uncomfortable. Most of the habits we have- whether if they're positive or negative- are changeable, but it takes more time to replace negative ones with positive ones. Discomfort doesn't have to be a bad thing here, and when you bring that into focus with intentional living, this one little action done consistently can lead to more personal growth; you just have to be open enough to make that happen. Good luck and have a great day!