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BITESIZE | How to live a happy, healthy and fulfilling life at any age | Daniel Levitin #137

Dec 4, 2020 7m 5s 9 insights
Imagine if you could reverse ageing and cognitive decline and improve your brain health purely through your mindset and approach to life. Feel Better Live More Bitesize is my new weekly podcast for your mind, body and heart. Each week I’ll be featuring inspirational stories and practical tips from some of my former guests. This week’s guest is Daniel Levitin, a neuroscientist, cognitive psychologist and bestselling author. He explains why what we do day-to-day affects not just our short-term health, but also how our brain changes with age. Daniel describes 3 personality traits, or mindsets, that are the key ingredient to longterm health and happiness. By cultivating a mindset of conscientiousness, curiosity & gratitude we can slow the ageing process. These are simple and fun things we can do now to live a live a healthy and fulfilling life both today and into our old age. Show notes and the full podcast are available at drchatterjee.com/112 Follow me on instagram.com/drchatterjee/ Follow me on facebook.com/DrChatterjee/ Follow me on twitter.com/drchatterjeeuk
Actionable Insights

1. Cultivate Conscientiousness for Well-being

Strive to finish tasks you start and do the best possible job, pushing yourself to do more and better in any endeavor. This mindset is identified as the number one factor influencing health and happiness across all ages.

2. Embrace Lifelong Learning & Curiosity

Remain curious and continuously learn new things in any area of human endeavor, such as gardening, cooking, or choosing healthy foods. This practice is neuroprotective, building cognitive reserve that can help mitigate the noticeable effects of conditions like Alzheimer’s.

3. Practice Daily Gratitude

Embrace gratitude for what you have, rather than focusing on what you lack, to foster happiness and prevent the brain from entering a fear mode that releases cortisol. Consider specific routines like reciting a list of gratitudes every morning and night, as exemplified by the speaker’s grandmother.

4. Meditate on Gratitude & Compassion

Follow the Dalai Lama’s practice of meditating on gratitude and compassion for two to four hours daily. This practice is believed to be the real secret to happiness.

5. Learn New Skills Regularly

Engage in learning new skills, even later in life, such as playing a musical instrument. Consistent practice of new skills, like the grandmother learning keyboard, can lead to significant cognitive improvement and maintain mental acuity over time.

6. Support Gut Health with AG1

Consider incorporating AG1, a daily health drink, into your routine to support digestion and enrich the gut microbiome with beneficial bacteria. The drink contains five strains of gut bacteria that have been shown to increase beneficial bacteria up to tenfold.

7. Share Positive Content

Spread positivity by sharing episodes like this podcast with friends and family.

8. Sign Up for Newsletter

Subscribe to the weekly newsletter at drchatterjee.com/subscribe for exclusive content, thoughts, quotes, articles, and music not shared on social media.

9. Listen to Full Conversations

If you enjoy bite-sized content, go back and listen to the full-length podcast conversations for more in-depth insights.