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Four takeaways:

One’s quality of life as they get older should be viewed through a holistic lens– happiness, health, and emotional wholeness. This article provides four habits that help us retain those qualities into our later years. These habits are:

1. Exercise for the body and brain: physical activity has been shown to help stave off the shrinking of the hippocampus that is natural with aging. Strength training also combats age-related muscle loss.
2. Strive for mental fitness: From “find my friends” to reading books to practicing a hobby to meditation, even 10 minutes of mental exercise a day can help rewire the brain to be stronger and more agile.
3. Stay social: social connection has been tied by study after study to enhance emotional/mental health and reduce the risk of premature death. The U.S. surgeon general issued an advisory this year warning of the nation’s loneliness epidemic.
4. Develop good sleep hygiene: sleep becomes more difficult with age, and many seniors find themselves going to bed later and rising earlier. A strong sleep routine can not only help maintain alertness and cognition but to avoid the long-term risks of poor sleep: depression, Alzheimer’s disease, and cancer.

From Kristine Gill for Fortune
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Six takeaways:

Admitting you’re wrong and fessing up to your mistakes fosters open and honest communications, which allow trust to be built and respect to be warranted. Here are six steps to doing it right:

1. Apologize: A meaningful apology can dispel negative feeling and move the conversation towards next steps. What other people care about is your impact, not your intent.
2. Take accountability: Show that you understand your error, without shying away from it. Be clear in showing them you will avoid making the mistake again.
3. Act fast: Acting quickly on a mistake demonstrates humility, honesty, and personal responsibility. Issues arise when individuals and teams engage in secrecy or cover up instances or occurrences that would look poor on them.
4. Offer a solution: do not simply declare ownership of your mistake, show it by preparing a recovery plan and executing it as soon as possible.
5. Understand why you made the mistake and learn from it: Reflect on the mistake. Have you been overworked, or disengaged? Address the personal or systemic reasons for the error.
6. Don’t be too hard on yourself — mistakes happen!: Self-demonization only delays or obscures the more productive learnings that allow us to learn from and build upon these mistakes.

From Kate Dagher for Fellow
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Five takeaways:

1. Apologizing is not easy: a poorly executed apology can actually exacerbate an existing issue. Be ready to apologize in a way that is most likely to solve the problem you created.
2. Apologize productively: While an expression of regret is a good start, research shows that the acceptance of an apology is most effectively guaranteed by a tangible offer of repair for harm done, and an explanation of what went wrong.
3. Apologizing is less costly and more beneficial than you think: research shows that we tend to overestimate the cost and underestimate the benefit of apologizing.
4. Take full responsibility: be bold in self-attributing your own errors, because a begrudging or half-hearted apology is easily detected and will undermine the intention completely.
5. Use contrition as a self-improvement practice: life progresses step by step, and our characteristics are adaptable. Recognizing our errors and expressing regret not only strengthens our resolve but also propels us towards continuous self-betterment.

From Arthur C. Brooks at The Atlantic:
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Note: At the time of this posting The Atlantic offers five free article views per month.

Ten rules:

Aristotle defined happiness as eudaemonia, which means “good spirit.” He posited that genuine happiness wasn’t so much about seeking it out, but rather drawing it to oneself by adhering to 10 essential virtues that foster the “good spirit” essential for true contentment. These ten virtues are:

1. Courage: To act in the face of fear, rather than give into it, invites happiness. It makes us feel resilient.
2. Temperance: Self-control in the face of one’s appetites and base impulses creates a feeling of resilience and self-determination.
3. Liberality: Avoid stinginess without being foolish about spending.
4. Magnificence: Here Aristotle meant that one should carry out projects “most nobly and splendidly,” and to be generous. Research has shown in study after study that giving makes us happier.
5. Greatness of soul: Occupy yourself with more meaningful activities, seek deeper knowledge. Use this pursuit to rise above petty irritations and unpleasant things that arise.
6. Gentleness: Be intentionally kind and control your temper. Aggressive, angry thinking can be shortsighted and harmful.
7. Truthfulness about yourself: Do not be boastful, but also be wary of self-deprecation. Seek secure humility through which you can show others who you are without bragging or self-denigration.
8. Equity: By this, Aristotle meant that a person should seek out opportunity to “receive a smaller share” when not bound by law or appearance to do so. To look to volunteer the spoils of one’s advantages.
9. Forgiveness: Be forgiving of the faults of others. Be intentional about letting go of grievances, which can weigh down the psyche.
10. Modesty: For Aristotle, modesty is similar to temperance. Here he urges us to avoid vices; to apply a moral modesty to consumption and temptation.

From Arthur C. Brooks at The Atlantic:
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Note: At the time of this posting The Atlantic offers five free article views per month.