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Successful People Share The Small Things You Can Do To Have A Better Year

Successful People Share The Small Things You Can Do To Have A Better Year

Successful People Share The Small Things You Can Do To Have A Better Year

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Making changes in your life can seem like an almost impossible task. It's easy to find yourself overwhelmed with daunting thoughts like "I have to lose 100 lbs" or "I have to get out of debt". But what might happen if we tackle smaller changes over longer periods of time? Reddit users shared their favorite small changes that make a big impact over a year, and now we're sharing some of our top picks with you.

What small habit, if done everyday over the course of a year, can lead to the biggest personal improvement/ gain?

1. Just Put It Away

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Wise words from my mates grandma "Don't put it down, put it away".

So much of the mess around my apartment was down to me leaving things out instead of taking the extra minute to put them away in their correct place.

I'm not perfect but it has helped!!

2. Write It Out

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I just read about a couple of studies where they had subjects do expressive writing about traumatic experiences. This is writing about their deepest feelings about these things, rather than the objective facts of what happened. And I recall one group only did this for 15 minutes of the day, and they found a boosted immunity and people taking more positive action. One group was a bunch of people laid off without warning and over half found jobs pretty quickly where only around 20% of the control group did.

3. Just Thirty Minutes

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For us heavier people, quit drinking soda and walk half an hour a day. Watch what happens.

Man, I feel hypocritical just typing that.

4. Change For Change

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Put all your spare change in a jar

5. Make A List

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Plan the next day before going to bed at night and write a 'to do list'. The next day before repeating the process review your to-do list. Sounds really simple, but it's a real procrastination buster.

6. So, No More Netflix Til Dawn?

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Try to go to sleep at the same time everyday and wake up at the same time as well

7. Don't Stop Moving

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I'm a serial procrastinator, habitually late, and easily crippled by indecision.

But a while ago when my ex and I broke up (through things that had nothing to do with any of those things), I decided to hit the gym (as people do after break ups) and felt like going in the morning made the most sense.

So before I got to bed, I check the weather for the next day, review my calendar on what I'm doing the next day, and I pre-pack my gym bag with work clothes, and layout my gym clothes, as well as whatever lunch or breakfast I've pre-made, and go to bed.

Then when I wake up the next morning, I get up and don't stop moving.

Get up, make coffee, don't even turn the fucking tv on or open FB or Reddit, shotgun a protein bar, toss on gym clothes and grab my gym bag and I'm out the door walking to the subway.

I really wake up while stretching at the gym and by the time the coffee and preworkout kicks in, I'm killing it.

Hit the shower, walk another two blocks to work, and instead of walking in the door at 8:10am half asleep, I fucking kick the door to my office in at 7:50am with my brain firing on all cylinders and ready to kick ass and take names.

I'm in better shape and far more productive than I've ever been, so long as I plan and plan and plan before going to bed.

Changed my life.

8. Walk The Dog

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Walk your dog. Stop just letting it go outside and come back in. Two walks a day, morning and night. The exercise is great for people just starting to get into the groove. Your dog will love it and you for spending more time with it. They'll also enjoy the fresh air and new smells. Plus, you've picked up a great health habit for two or more individuals. Being your boyfriend/girlfriend and/or kids. You'll gain new appreciations for wildlife, too. Get yourself some comfortable cross training shoes, too. I recommend serpentine Sketchers.

9. Rejection Rules

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Try to get rejected once a day.

Not for anything in particular or even particularly important. You'll succeed less than you think.

Advice from an old professor. He was a photographer and would 'try to get rejected' getting into all kinds of cool places.

...he got into a lot of cool places.

10. The Idiot Test

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Following the words of fictional character Dwight Schrute:

"Whenever I'm about to do something, I think, 'Would an idiot do that?' And if they would, I do not do that thing."

Craving a cigarette? Ask yourself the question.

Want to ditch class and stay at home? Ask the question.

Procrastinating? Ask the question.

Worrying about things you cant control? Ask the question

Self-sabotaging? Ask the question.

If an idiot would do that thing, don't do that thing.

11. Get Cooking

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Each day follow a different recipe from a cookbook or online. Plan your meals weekly and shop for the right ingredients in one shop.

After a year you will be an amazing home cook.

12. Commit To Improvement

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I've seen many good small things, but I'm going to toss out an elaboration: incremental improvement, and a baseline task.

The baseline task is something you have to do every day. Sick as a dog? Get it done. Groggy waking up? Too bad. Slept late and will be late for work? ...do it as soon as you get home!

This can be anything. Making your bed, searching your room for clutter for 5-10 minutes, doing 30 minutes of yoga before work, etc. All it has to be is some small task, preferably at the start of the day that gets you up, thinking a little, and moving around. Set one alarm clock. Two for safety. Setting 10 only hurts you.

I chose to do the yoga, and it pays dividends. I'm up earlier than I would be otherwise, and more alert. I have the time to make breakfast afterward. I can spend the first 30 minutes at work alertly setting up the day instead of docking around while I wake up. If I happen to miss that days "real exercise" (and to be clear, I definitely saw some weight loss/strength gain from the yoga after ~6 weeks) I don't feel like it's a total bust.

From there, pick something else. Brush your teeth, twice, every day. Then pick up flossing. Then pick up using mouthwash. Maybe invest in a tongue brush. Make your bed. Go for a jog. Spend 30 minutes reading. Add one of these things every week or two, not all at once. Make one a habit, then build on it.

Some days, you'll be busy, or tired, or you'll want to binge watch Netflix instead while eating Doritos. And that's fine! Being a robot is a bad thing - you'll find that on those days maybe you missed your jog, you ate out dinner instead of cooking, and you played video games instead of reading...but you still made your bed, still did yoga, and still took care of your oral hygiene. Good job!

What I'd recommend that I'm sure you can find throughout the thread to add one thing every two weeks:

Do yoga for 30 minutes right when you wake up. Every. Single. Day.

Make your bed. As fancy as you want - I straighten the sheet and place my pillow properly.

Brush your teeth if you aren't already. At night, then in the morning.

Floss at night

Use mouthwash (enamel-safe, anti-cavity whitening is best) after breakfast and before bed

Go for a 30 minute to one hour bike ride every other day. Or a swim. I recommend these as they're non-impact cardio sports; get into running once you have the diligence and cardiovascular endurance.

Pick up some kind of 30 minute to one hour lifting routine to do 2-3 Times a week (I recommend starting strength or the reddit Recommended Routine).

Find a 10-minute chore to do, every day. You can watch Netflix while you do it. Vacuum the floor, get your clothes in the bin, wash those three dishes, etc.

Imagine where you'll be in six months. You'll have good hygiene, be more flexible, be in great shape, you'll have a clean living space, and god knows what else you've done!

Tl;Dr: Pick one good thing to do every day. Always do it. Pick another good thing to add next week. Repeat for three months, then hold onto them. Don't get discouraged.

13. Laughter Is The Best Medicine

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Find something to laugh and smile at everyday. It makes even a bad day better and improves your mood.

14. Comfort Is A Killer

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My dad recognized in me that I often avoided social gatherings/situations. He sat me down one day and said, "You can't always do what you're comfortable with. When you only do what you're comfortable with, you always end up in the same place. There's no room for progress."

Fast forward 15 years. I have a job that relies heavily on networking and social functions. Don't get me wrong - I still hate going to functions, and I still have to give myself a pep-talk before I go to them, but I go. And every time I do, I think about my Dad and that moment he showed me the way.

this can be applied to daily activities: do one thing per day that is out of your comfort zone. Talk to a stranger (within reason), try a new activity, visit a new area, etc. It broadens your horizons.

15. One Cigarette At A Time

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If you smoke, start smoking less and less every day. Like

Day 1: 35 cigarettes

Day 2: 34 cigarettes

Day 3: 33 cigarettes

And so on. My grandfathers friend did this, and quit smoking a while ago.

16. Get A Hobby

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Can be anything but practice a craft or hobby every single freakin day.

Can be playing an instrument, can be painting and so on. But spend time on it everyday and who knows where it can lead you!

17. Purposeful Positivity

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Think positive thoughts and be grateful for what you have. I started pinning millions of quotes on Pinterest because I am a Pinterest addict, and then I copy those quotes down onto colorful sticky notes and put them all over on the walls in my bedroom. That way, I can wake up each morning with a positive quote or saying. If I have a bad day, I can go into my bedroom and read all of the wonderful quotes I have. One positive quote can change someone's day. This makes me feel good about myself and life in general.

18. Music Makes A Difference

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Playlist your life:

I started doing this after watching 'Baby Driver' by Edgar Wright.

So let's say, with traffic, it takes me 30 min to get to school. I keep a curated Spotify playlist of songs to get me in the mood that adds up to 35-40 minutes.

Some of the effects I feel from doing this that I don't feel like killing myself as I walk into school in the morning, I've become more confident and carefree as I half-dance to my locker, and it creates a more casual environment among my classmates, which is always a plus.

Never underestimate the power of a good song!

19. Meal Planning

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Plan your meals for the week!

I never thought I might ever do this, but me and my partner recently started meal planning and it's working so well!

We made a list of all the meals that are easy to cook and we both like, and every Saturday we pick 5 of them and then shop for all the ingredients. We also take our own lunches to work.

Not only is this muuuuch cheaper, it also saves us from soggy supermarket sandwiches for lunch, lazy frozen pizzas every night, having to figure out what we want every night and having to go to the supermarket daily to get ingredients.

20. Multi-tasking

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As a kid helping my mom cook, I learned that cleaning WHILE you cook is the greatest feat. Every time I serve a meal I already have all the dishes done and am so thankful for this ability to multitask. There's always time when you're waiting for water to boil or oil to heat up, it's the best to finish eating and just have your plates to wash.

H/T: Reddit

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Our ancient ancestors had their own habits; some were strange and bewildering, others were nearly identical to those we practice today. Looking back through history, one might be surprised to find the daily lives of the ancients weren't so unrecognizable. But then again, there are still plenty of ancient habits that leave us scratching our heads.

1. Ground-Breaking Discovery

Recently, archaeologists working in Italy’s Caverna delle Arene Candide found a heap of rocks. Not exactly headline news, but these rocks had been carried up from a nearby beach and broken in a consistent, uniform fashion, and similar-sized pieces had been taken from each one. It appears that Neolithic Italians broke the rocks as a funerary rite—the rocks themselves may have represented lost loved ones, and breaking them symbolized the person dying.

2. Shake On It

person holding hands of another personPhoto by Sincerely Media on Unsplash

The tradition of greeting another person by shaking hands dates at least as far back as the Ancient Greeks. One column at the Acropolis even shows the Greek goddess of marriage, Hera, shaking hands with the Greek goddess of wisdom, Athena.

3. A Little Pick-Me-Up

Nowadays we have Viagra and Cialis, but Pliny the Elder suggested a bevy of ancient Roman aphrodisiacs that reads more like a witch’s shopping list than a doctor’s prescription. To put the pep back in your step, Pliny suggested the yolks of pigeon eggs, in honey, mixed with hog’s lard, or sparrows eggs, or a lizard drowned in one’s own urine. If that didn't work, you could always wear “the right testicle of a cock.” I’ll pause long enough for you to stop giggling.

4. For The Ladies

brown falcon on treePhoto by Photos By Beks on Unsplash

Got it out of your system? Ok, moving on: For ladies with low libido, Pliny advised ingesting a vulture’s tongue, or wearing a patch of wool soaked in bat’s blood on top of the head. It seems so obvious, doesn't it?

5. Just ’Browsing

Nothing made a Greek woman feel more attractive than having a thick, swarthy unibrow. To the Greeks, the unibrow signaled a combination of beauty and brains. Greek women would go to great lengths to get that perfect forehead mustache, lining their brows with kohl or soot, or even using tree resin to affix fake eyebrows made of goats’ hair to their foreheads.

6. Of Corset Was!

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You probably associate the fitted corset with those breathless Victorian women who, though they maintained their figure, looked constantly on the verge of fainting, but they weren't the first to wear them. The corset goes all the way back to the Ancient Minoan women of Crete, who wore similar restrictive bodices. The Minoan corsets were likely the first fitted garments ever worn.

7. To Be Taken With A Grain Of Salt

Popular superstition states that, if one should spill some salt, one can counteract the bad luck by throwing a pinch of salt over the shoulder. That practice actually goes all the way back to the ancient Assyrians. The superstition was passed on from them to the Egyptians, and then the Greeks, and the Romans, all the way to today.

8. Stairway To Heaven

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The same is true of walking under ladders—the Egyptians came up with that one. Because a ladder leaning against a wall formed a triangle, representative of the holy trinity of Egyptian gods, to walk through was considered sacrilegious. Naturally, that superstation lent itself perfectly to the early Christians. I always just thought it was because you're likely to get something dropped on you if you walk under a ladder.

9. As It Nappens

Just like the Spaniards with their customary siesta, the Ancient Greeks would insist on taking a quick mid-day nap throughout the summer. One 5th-century medical text advised that a brief nap around noon kept the body from “drying out.”

10. That Sucks!

In ancient Ireland, one showed submission to tribal kings by sucking their nipples. Bog-bodies (ancient remain found well-preserved by the chemicals in a bogs) have been found with slashed nipples, indicating that they had been driven from the throne.

11. Pour One Out

Even if you're completely out of touch, you’ve probably seen a rapper “pouring one out” in a music video. Feel free to pour one out in memory of Pac or Biggie, but you should know the practice actually began with the Ancient Egyptians, who first spilled their drinks as a tribute to their god of death, Osiris.

12. The Good Book

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The practice of libations was continued by the Greeks. There is even mention of “pouring one out” in the Old Testament: Genesis 35:14 states “Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him [God], even a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it.”

13. Beer For Breakfast

While the pharaohs had no shortage of delicacies to choose from—fruit and honey and wine and cured fish and all manner of roasted beasts—the Egyptian working class had a significantly shorter menu. The typical Egyptian breakfast consisted of bread, beer, and onions.

14. Sand Gets Everywhere

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And sand. Lots of sand. Keeping sand out of their food was a huge problem for Egyptians, and coupled with their rough, fibrous diet and the fact that they had no real culture of dental hygiene, it meant that Egyptians of modest means usually suffered severe dental issues.

15. Chickening Out

Roman navies always kept chickens on board their ships, but they never intended to eat the birds. Rather, the chickens were offered cake. If the chickens pecked the cake, the Romans were sure to have luck in their upcoming battle. One Roman admiral, furious that his chicken wouldn’t peck, shunned superstition by throwing his chicken overboard and declared, “If it won’t eat, it can drink instead!”

27. The Stash

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According to Herodotus, certain tribes to the east liked to throw bushels of marijuana on bonfires and enjoy a nice stone. As with a lot of stuff that Herodotus said, historians took this with a grain of salt, but in 2008 archaeologists discovered the tomb of a 2,700-year-old mummy in the Western Chinese province of Xinjiang.

In addition to the mummy—presumably, a shaman of the Yuehzi people—was nearly 800 grams of marijuana, worth about $8,000 to modern consumers. Also found in the tomb, a stack of Bob Marley records and a poster bearing the phrase “Legalize It.”

17. A Different Period

To cope with severe menstrual symptoms, Roman women used tampons soaked in opium, while Egyptian men were allowed—and even encouraged—to take time off work to care for their menstruating wives or daughters.

18. Don’t Sweat It

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After a big day at the Colosseum, Roman fight-goers liked to celebrate the trip by buying souvenirs. Gladiator sweat was a favorite, as was lard from the animals who had been killed during the show. The sweat was mixed with olive oil and sold as a perfume. It was also considered a powerful aphrodisiac. I'll pass, thanks.

19. Decisions, Decisions

According to Herodotus, the rule of thumb among the Ancient Persians was if something was decided upon while drunk, all people involved must wait until they’ve sobered up, and decide again. Later writers added that, if something were decided while sober, the Persians would again put the decision under scrutiny by getting drunk and seeing if the idea held up. At least they covered all their bases!

20. Puking Party

girl in grey tank top holding purple flowerPhoto by Дмитрий Хрусталев-Григорьев on Unsplash

As everyone knows, the Romans loved to party, but of course one can only party so much. The idea of any Roman feast was to eat and drink as much as physically possible. When a Roman began to feel too full, or too drunk, it was socially acceptable, and even encouraged, to induce vomiting, thereby making room for more.

It should be said, however, that it's a misconception that they had special rooms called "vomitoria" for this purpose. Vomitoria did exist, but they were special passages in theaters or auditoria designed to efficiently allow many people to exit at once. The name comes from the Latin word vomo, which means "to spew forth."

21. No Pants Allowed

The Greeks and Romans had pants, they just didn’t wear them. The Greeks thought they looked silly, and the Romans considered them “for the barbarians,” since they were customarily worn by Germanic peoples to the north.

22. Spitting Image

man spitting waterPhoto by Asael Peña on Unsplash

It wouldn’t be unusual to see a Roman spit on himself; it was something they did any time they encountered a mentally ill person or someone with epilepsy. Not only were these traits undesirable, they were considered contagious as well. By spitting on himself, a Roman was protecting himself from the spread of a disease—an action that had no basis, even in Roman medicine, but remained a widely held superstition.

23. The Cure-All

For everything that spitting couldn’t cure, the Romans swore by "theriac." The compound, invented by Nero’s personal physician, was made of 64 different ingredients, including opium and viper flesh, and was said to cure everything from poisoning to plague. Theriac remained a common item in apothecaries and pharmaceutical shops well into the 19th century, because if nothing works anyway, you might as well eat some snake parts.

24. Ancient Times

grayscale photo of round analog clockPhoto by Timo C. Dinger on Unsplash

Punctual Romans carried around portable sundials, not unlike our more modern pocket watches. Each sundial came with specific instructions on how to use it based on one’s geographical coordinates and the season. But the Romans didn’t rely on a regular 60 minute hour like we do: rather, they followed the Egyptian example of keeping a 45 minute hour through the summer and a 75 minute hour in the winter. How could that not have confused people?

25. Fast Food

The Romans were a busy, on-the-go people, so it’s not surprising that, just like us moderns, they loved fast food. There were restaurants all over the Rome, many of them with windows that opened onto the street so customers could just order their food and go. I wonder if they had drive-thru windows for chariots?

17. Pompeiians Can’t Cook

brown and white concrete buildingPhoto by Yaopey Yong on Unsplash

There were more than 200 take-out restaurants in Pompeii alone. Taking dinner out was so common that many Pompeiian homes didn’t even have kitchens.

16. Vend Diagram

The Romans even had vending machines. Or at least they had the technology—the only known example, built by Roman-Egyptian inventor Hero of Alexander, was coin-operated and dispensed holy water.

28. Cone Heads

brown concrete statue of manPhoto by Tom Podmore on Unsplash

Long before the spray bottle was invented, the Egyptians developed a unique way to apply perfume. They wore tall cones of resin or ox fat on the top of their heads. The cones would be infused with aromatic oils and myrrh. As the balmy night wore on, the cones melted, leaving the Egyptians coated in fragrant oil. It was considered good hospitality to offer these cones to guests at a party.

29. The Best Part Of Waking Up…

Coffee came from Africa, tea from the far east. Neither seemed to have caught on among the Romans. Given the dearth of caffeinated beverages, the Romans began their mornings with a beverage made of goat feces and vinegar. I'll stick to my bean juice, thanks.

30. Just Do It

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According to Pliny the Elder (this guy again...), the goat dung and vinegar beverage was especially popular among chariot racers; it was kind of like an ancient version of Gatorade. The emperor Nero personally endorsed the drink, saying that it gave him extra strength.

31. Urine Luck

The Romans used human urine in industries like leather tanning, and some of these companies even paid a “urine tax” for the privilege. But that’s not all: Urine was used by the Romans as a laundry detergent, a fertilizer, and even as a mouthwash. Because, you know, nothing makes your mouth cleaner than...

32. A Brush With The Egyptians

blue and white plastic bottlePhoto by 莎莉 彭 on Unsplash

In this instance, at least, the Egyptians were centuries ahead of the Romans, and even ahead of pre-20th century Westerners. The Egyptians invented the toothbrush, and used it in conjunction with a toothpaste made of gum arabica, soot, and water that actually would have done an OK job.

33. Mint Condition

In fact, one 4th century Egyptian text offers a complete—though different—recipe for toothpaste: one drachma of rock salt, one drachma of iris flowers, 20 grains of pepper, and, of course, two drachmas of mint for kissably fresh breath. Hey, if it's not human urine, I'll take it!

34. Getting Around To It

man and woman statue under blue sky during daytimePhoto by Sergio García on Unsplash

Let’s talk about bad habits for a minute. Here in the modern world, many of us have trouble getting motivated—we tend to put off starting things, even if they’re important or good for us. But don't feel so bad, even our ancient ancestors struggled with procrastination.

Putting off crucial business was so common in Ancient Greece that the Greeks had a word for it: akrasia, “the state of acting against one’s own interest.”

35. So Stupid, It’s Smart

One Greek statesman discovered a trick to help him defeat akrasia: Demosthenes shaved one side of his head (seriously). Funny, but how does it help? Demosthenes reasoned—rightly, perhaps—that he would be less tempted to go outside if he knew people would make fun of his stupid haircut. Rather than risk the mockery and taunts of his fellow Athenians, he stayed home and studied. Something to remember next time you’ve got a big exam coming up.

36. Moldy Medicine

sliced bread on tablePhoto by Helena Yankovska on Unsplash

The Ancient Egyptians applied moldy bread crusts to burns. This practice has also been found in ancient Greek, Chinese, and Serbian cultures. While none of these ancient cultures had any way to know specifically, they did seem to intuit that the microbes and antibodies active in the mold were good for fighting off infections.

37. An Eyebrow Raising Habit

Eyebrows were important to the Ancient Egyptians, as well. The death of a household cat was a serious tragedy—the Egyptians literally worshipped the furry felines—and families would often demonstrate their grief by shaving their eyebrows off.

38. The Cat’s Pyjamas

Free Images : animal, monument, statue, cat, egypt, sculpture ...pxhere.com

Cats were idolized by the Egyptians because of their skill at killing vermin like rats and snakes, and because they also represented fertility. When a cat died, even the cat of a laborer, it was given a noble burial, mummified, and laid to rest surrounded by pots of milk and mummified mice. We should all be so lucky.

39. Pretty Disrespectful

The practice of mummifying cats was so common that, over the course of the 19th century, British industrialists were able to import nineteen tons of mummified kitties for use as fertilizer.

40. Not Monkeying Around

black monkey sitting on rock during daytimePhoto by Benjamin Ong on Unsplash

Cats weren’t the only pets loved by the Egyptians; they were also known to keep monkeys. Big monkeys. Really big monkeys, like baboons, in fact. Baboons don’t live in Egypt—they had to be imported to Egypt specifically—but their popularity led them to develop a wealth of cultural and religious significance to the Egyptian people, and one was considered lucky indeed to have one of the simians in their home.

41. The Hogs Of War

The Greeks and Romans employed an unlikely ally when they went to war: Because their rivals in the east typically employed elephants, the Greeks and Romans enlisted the help of war pigs, whose squeals terrified the giant beasts.

42. The Romans Treated Their Kids Like Garbage

a statue of a person holding a staffPhoto by Clemens van Lay on Unsplash

Roman families did have adoption practices—even Julius Caesar adopted his great-nephew Octavian, later known as Augustus—but it was mostly a way for the wealthy Roman elite to ensure they had an heir. For poorer families, unwanted children were often just left at the dump.

If those unwanted babies didn’t die, they were usually taken to be raised as slaves.