7 Simple Rules to Transform Your Life, Live Better and Be Happier

Table of Contents

1. What it means to truly improve the way you live
2. Seven simple rules to change the way you live
3. How to apply these rules in your daily routine without stressing out
4. Common mistakes when you try to change the way you live
5. Psychological and neurological benefits of living with more awareness
6. Frequently asked questions about how to change the way you live

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Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if you stopped living on autopilot and truly started choosing each day? 😊

As a psychologist, astrologer and confessed lover of the human brain, I have seen the same thing over and over in my practice: people full of potential who feel empty, trapped in routine, connected to their phones but disconnected from themselves.

A neurosurgeon, Andrew Brunswick, who works with people in extreme situations, noticed the same pattern from the operating room. His patients, when faced with life's fragility, talk about regrets, fears, neglected relationships

From that, he summarized seven simple rules to change the way you live and give more meaning to your days.

Today I want to tell you these ideas with my personal touch, from psychology, neuroscience and a bit of astrology too, because the natal chart can show your tendencies, but you choose how you want to live 😉.

What it means to truly improve the way you live

When someone tells me in therapy: “I want to change my life”, they almost never mean only changing jobs or cities. They mean something deeper.

Improving the way you live usually means:

• Stopping the feeling that days repeat like a photocopy.


• Finding a purpose that goes beyond paying bills.


• Lowering mental noise and constant anxiety.


• Living with more presence, less guilt and more internal coherence.


• Taking better care of your body, your emotions and your relationships.

The good news: the brain changes throughout life. Neuroscience calls it neuroplasticity. Each time you choose a new behavior, even a small one, you teach the brain a new path. You don't need a total revolution, but simple rules you can apply every day.

Seven simple rules to change the way you live

Here are the seven rules inspired by Brunswick's work and that I have also verified with patients and in workshops. They aren't abstract theories; they work if you apply them consistently.

• 1 Observe your life as it happens 👀
  

  Many people move as if someone has set the autopilot mode. They get up, complain, work, get distracted by the phone, fall asleep, repeat.

  
  

  The first rule is to look at your life attentively. Ask yourself several times a day:

  
  
  
  
  • What am I feeling right now?
  
  
  • What am I thinking while doing this?
  
  
  • Am I choosing or just reacting?
  
  
  
  

  In psychology this is called mindfulness. Brain scans show that when you practice presence, the prefrontal cortex — the area that regulates impulses and decisions — strengthens. Translated: you react less out of inertia and choose more with awareness.

  
  

  A simple exercise I give many patients: while you eat, do it without your phone and without the TV. Just you, the plate, the taste and your breathing. It seems silly, but you train your mind to be here and now.

  
  



• 2 Subtract instead of add 🧹
  

  We live in a culture that sells you the idea that you need more of everything to be happy: more clothes, more goals, more courses, more series, more notifications.

  
  

  Brunswick insists on something very simple: remove instead of accumulate. And I completely agree. When I help someone with anxiety, many times they don't need more techniques, but less noise.

  
  

  Ask yourself:

  
  
  • What commitments can you drop?
  
  
  • What objects only take up space and energy?
  
  
  • What apps can you delete from your phone?
  
  
  
  

  The mind breathes when you declutter. Minimalism isn't just a pretty Instagram trend, it's a psychological gift. By reducing the unnecessary, you recognize more clearly what truly matters.

  
  



• 3 Challenge your limits 💪
  

  Your comfort zone feels safe, but it also becomes a silent cage. The brain loves routine because it uses less energy, but if you never challenge it, it becomes lazy and your self-esteem stagnates.

  
  

  I propose something: choose a challenge that gives you a bit of fear and excitement at the same time. For example:

  
  
  
  
  • Speak in public at a meeting.
  
  
  • Start therapy you've been postponing.
  
  
  • Take a class in something you think “isn't your thing.”
  
  
  • Say no when you always say yes.
  
  
  
  

  Every time you cross a personal boundary, your brain releases dopamine, the neurotransmitter of achievement. And a powerful message is recorded: “I am capable of more than I thought”.

  
  

  At a motivational talk a man told me: “I thought I would faint when I told my story in public, but afterward I slept better than I had in years.” The achievement wasn't speaking perfectly, it was daring.

  
  



• 4 Invest in real relationships 🤝
  

  Scientific evidence repeats it tirelessly: quality relationships predict your well-being and health more than money or professional success. The famous Harvard study on happiness, which follows people for decades, reached that very conclusion.

  Brunswick sees it clearly in the hospital: in critical moments, people don't ask to see their résumé, they ask to see their loved ones.

  Reflect:

  
  
  
  
  • How many of your conversations stay superficial?
  
  
  • Who can you call today to talk genuinely, without multitasking?
  
  
  • What important relationship are you letting wither?
  
  
  
  

  I invite you to make a small daily “emotional investment”:

  
  
  
  
  • Honest messages that don't limit themselves to “how are you”.
  
  
  • Hugs longer than two seconds.
  
  
  • Screen-free time when you're with someone you care about.
  
  
  
  

  Your nervous system calms when you feel connected. You're not a machine, you're a deeply relational being.

  
  



• 5 Plan remembering your time is not infinite ⏰
  

  I know, it sounds harsh, but it's liberating: you won't have time for everything. And that's okay, because precisely for that reason your time is precious.

  Many people organize their schedule as if they were immortal. They fill days with automatic errands and leave the important things for “someday”: that personal project, that pending conversation, that trip, that rest.

  I propose a shift that works very well with my patients:

  
  
  
  
  • Each morning choose only three real priorities for that day.
  
  
  • Do one thing at a time, with more presence and less hurry.
  
  
  • Also schedule rest, conscious leisure and moments with people you love.
  
  
  
  

  When you remember that time is limited, you stop postponing the essential. Curiously, many people become calmer when they accept they can't do it all.

  
  



• 6 Live your own life, not the one others expect 🎭
  

  In therapy I often hear phrases like: “I studied this because my family expected it” or “I married because it was time” or “I work at something I hate, but it gives status”.

  Brunswick observes something similar: many people wake up halfway through life with the uncomfortable feeling of having lived someone else's script.

  Living your own life means aligning these three things:

  
  
  
  
  • What you do.
  
  
  • With what you feel.
  
  
  • And with what you truly value.
  
  
  
  

  From astrology, the natal chart shows your tendencies, talents and main challenges. But it's not a sentence, it's a map. You decide whether to follow the route of your essence or the route of social pressure.

  
  

  Ask yourself uncomfortable but necessary questions:

  
  
  
  
  • If no one judged me, what would I change in my life this year?
  
  
  • What choice do I make only out of fear of what others will say?
  
  
  • What desire have I been keeping quiet for years?
  
  
  
  

  Your inner peace grows when your decisions look more like you, and less like what others think.

  
  



• 7 Give your life: time, attention, talent, love 💗
  

  The last rule may sound spiritual, but it also has scientific support. Various studies in positive psychology show that people who give to others, genuinely, have greater well-being, better health and feel more life meaning.

  
  

  Giving your life doesn't mean sacrificing yourself to exhaustion. It means sharing:

  
  
  
  
  • Your time with someone who feels lonely.
  
  
  • Your listening with someone who needs to be heard.
  
  
  • Your knowledge with someone just starting out.
  
  
  • Your affection with those who make up your emotional network.
  
  
  
  

  Brunswick sums it up humanely when he says that, in critical moments, almost no one says “I wish I had worked more,” but many say “I wish I had spent more time with those I love”.

  
  

  When you give something of yourself, the ego turns the volume down a bit and something larger appears: meaning.

How to apply these rules in your daily routine without stressing out

You might think: “All this sounds great, but my life is a mess, where do I start” 😅.

Relax, you don't need to change everything in a week. Here's a practical way to begin:

• Choose only one of the rules for this week, the one that resonates with you most.


• Write on a sheet what you will do, when and how. No perfectionism.


• Set an alarm on your phone with a reminder phrase, for example: “Observe your life” or “Subtract commitments”.


• At the end of the day, write in two lines what you noticed was different.

The key is not intensity, but consistency. The brain learns better with small continuous repetitions than with big isolated efforts.

In a workshop I gave recently, a woman said: “I just turned off notifications at night and had dinner without my phone. In two weeks I felt calmer and even sleep better”. That's the kind of quiet change that transforms a life from the inside.

Common mistakes when you try to change the way you live

I've seen three very frequent mistakes when people try to improve their lives.

• Wanting to change everything at once
  

  Suddenly enthusiasm appears and you decide to exercise daily, meditate, eat healthy, read, keep a journal, learn a language and heal your family history, all at once. Result: fatigue and abandonment.

  Your brain gets blocked when it senses too many changes at once. Better little and sustainable.

  
  



• Constantly comparing yourself
  

  Social networks can inspire you, but they can also hurt you if you use them to measure your worth. No one posts their doubts, their gray days or their deepest fears, although everyone has them.

  
  

  Your path is yours. Unique. And that already makes it valuable.

  
  



• Expecting to feel motivated always
  

  Motivation goes up and down. You can't depend on it. What sustains change is not enthusiasm, it's commitment to small actions even on gray days.

  
  

  In sessions I often say: “You don't need to feel like it to start, you need to start for the desire to appear”.

Psychological and neurological benefits of living with more awareness

When you apply these rules, you not only “feel better”, real changes also occur in your mind and body.

• Constant activation of the stress system decreases, which reduces the risk of cardiovascular and digestive problems.


• Your ability to regulate intense emotions improves, thanks to the strengthening of brain areas like the prefrontal cortex.


• Your sense of purpose increases, which is linked to less depression and greater resilience.


• Your relationships deepen, and that protects your mental and physical health in the long term.


• It becomes easier to make coherent decisions, because you know yourself better and stop living on autopilot.

It's not about becoming a perfect person. It's about living with more presence, more truth and more self-love.

Frequently asked questions about how to change the way you live

I quickly answer some doubts I hear often in sessions and talks.

• What if I feel it's already too late to change?
  

  It's never too late while you're alive. The brain adapts even at advanced ages. I've seen people over sixty transform the way they relate, work and take care of themselves.

  
  



• Do I need therapy to change the way I live?
  

  Not always, but it helps a lot. You can start alone with these rules. If you feel you repeat painful patterns, can't move forward or your sadness or anxiety are very intense, seeking professional help shows courage, not weakness.




• How long does it take to see a change?
  

  Many people notice small improvements in a few weeks if they apply these ideas daily. Deep changes take months. The important thing is to see yourself as a process, not as a project that must come out perfect.

I want to leave you with a reflection I heard from an oncology patient that marked me forever. He told me: “If I had known everyday life was so valuable, I would have lived it with more attention, even Mondays”.

Maybe today you can start with that: live this day with a bit more presence, a bit less hurry and a bit more love toward yourself and those around you 💫.

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