Today’s Solutions: May 16, 2026

Worklife

Learn about how you can achieve a better work-life balance, and check out the latest news about the world of work, including advancements on ideas like the four-day work week and universal basic income.

Beware of Dog sign for security on wooden fence outside of home grey ranch house with red door.

Why do dogs hate postal workers so much?

It's a well-known fact that dogs hate postal workers. No matter how well trained your pet is, when the mail arrives, they expel a kind of protective angry growl that is a little scary. We accept this as a normal day-to-day occurrence, however, if this is your job this is not a laughing matter. Read More...

middle aged professional woman with black short hair smiles

Internships for adults or “returnships” can solve gender imbalances at work

It’s no secret that the events of the past couple of years interrupted many people’s professional journeys—however one group, in particular, has been hit especially hard: women, namely mothers, in the workforce. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, it was difficult for mothers who’ve Read More...

How Paris is quieting its nois

How Paris is quieting its noise pollution

Those of us that live in a city love it for the layers and layers of life, light, and vibrancy that come from a busy and populous environment. While it is an exciting and bustling place to live, we can also pay a price living in a city when, say, we’re just trying to go to sleep.  Noise Read More...

Woman using post-its to divide tasks

Less is more: How to boost productivity by figuring out what not to do

While it may sound completely counterintuitive, evidence supports the idea that if we want to ramp up our productivity and happiness, we should be doing less. As it turns out, when you stop doing the things that make you feel busy but aren’t getting results (and are draining you of energy), then Read More...

State of Flow

The formula of “flow”: how we get in the zone at work

We’ve all experienced the fulfilling experience of “flow.” This is the immersive and usually elating state of mind we reach when we are creatively moving from one sentence to another deep into a writing project, reacting thoughtlessly and rapidly in a basketball game, or even operating at Read More...

happy asian woman works from home on laptop

Beat procrastination and feel good at work with this mental habit

Procrastination is often seen as an aspect of poor time management, but research shows that as associate professor of psychology at Carleton University Tim Pychyl states: “Procrastination is not a time-management problem, it’s an emotion-management problem.” Even though bringing up Read More...

3 ways to relax to the max in

3 ways to relax to the max in nature, according to science

Okay, so you’ve finally decided to carve out the time in your busy schedule to commune with nature because you’ve heard and read that spending time outside has a wide range of benefits from physical health to mental wellbeing. However, you only have access to a city park, your backyard, or even Read More...

Stressed business man rushing in the office with not enough time to do his work.

Waking up stressed? You might be overestimating how much you can do in a day

If you wake up feeling like you’re already behind and overwhelmed, perhaps it’s time to reframe the way you look at the day. The issue may not be that you don’t have enough time in the day to get things done, it could just be that you planned unrealistically. Why do we fall into this Read More...

5 favorite things

5 easy solutions from our optimist CEO

The Optimist Daily is all about solutions — those that make big impacts in the world as well as those that enhance our daily lives. As solution-seekers, news readers, and good-for-the-world-and-soul product searchers, we often have things that have made our lives better. This week, we’ll review Read More...

Notebook and pen on yellow backround, writing concept.

Want to write really, really well? Here’s some great advice

Whether you're a lawyer, a teacher, or even a zookeeper, strong writing skills are critical for success throughout the many branches of society. If you want your words to stand out in this text-based world, these nine simple tips will help you sharpen your writing skills. Take some advice from Read More...