Your chances of losing weight increase when your friends are shedding pounds. Your work ethic improves when you admire and model yourself after a strong-disciplinedindividual. The same results apply to self-control: When you see others setting goals and sticking to them, you’re more likely to do the same.

A study from the University of Georgia found that even thinking about someone who possesses good self-control can boost your ability to stay disciplined. This was the first study to demonstrate that self-control is contagious within social and work circles.

The effect is so strong that researchers discovered a simple flash of a name associated with high or low self-control influenced participants' behaviors, meaning that the habits and level of discipline of those around you — whether positive or negative — can subtly shape your own choices.

By exhibiting self-control, you can inspire and positively impact the people around you. If you stick to an exercise routine, then your discipline could encourage others to stay committed to their fitness, financial or career goals. Psychologists suggest that your example can help reinforce good habits in the people closest to you.

However, the opposite is also true. People with poor self-control can influence others negatively and spread such behaviors as unhealthy eating, smoking or procrastination. Because humans naturally mirror the behaviors of people around them, these bad habits can take root if left unchecked.

Ultimately, the choice is yours. You can’t blame your friend for your second helping of cake, but you can choose to surround yourself with people who inspire you to be better. The good news? You don’t need to overhaul your entire social or work life.

Simply thinking about a disciplined individual — whether a friend, mentor or historical figure — can strengthen your own self-control.

So, who will you let influence you in a positive way?

About BCREA’s Housing Monitor Dashboard

The BCREA Economics team has created the Housing Monitor Dashboard to help REALTORS^® monitor BC’s housing market. This dashboard, which is updated monthly, provides up-to-date data on key variables for public education and use. Focuses include: 

• Resale Home Market

• Construction

• Rental Market

• Borrowing Costs

• Other BCREA Data

In the dashboard, the image and data are available for download under each chart, where possible.

Ingredients

½ cup canned chickpeas, drained and mashed

½ avocado, mashed

1 tbsp hummus

½ tsp lemon juice

¼ tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp smoked paprika

Salt and pepper to taste

1 small whole wheat or low-carb tortilla

Handful of spinach or arugula

Instructions:

In a bowl, mash chickpeas and avocado until combined but slightly chunky. Stir in hummus, lemon juice, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Spread mixture onto the tortilla, then top with spinach. Roll up tightly, slice in half and enjoy!

Why You'll Love This:

•A plant-based protein (about 15 grams) to keep you full.

•Contains healthy fats plus fiber for energy and digestion.

•Quick, creamy and flavorful—ready in about five minutes!

Imagine this: You’re sitting on your couch, staring out the window, and doing… nothing. No phone in your hand. No emails being answered. No laundry being folded “while you relax.” Just you, the moment and maybe the sound of a bird that seems to have its entire life figured out. Now, be honest: Did your brain just revolt? Did it whisper, “But I should be doing something productive?”

We’ve been trained to believe that stillness is wasted time; every minute must be optimized, every hobby should be turned into a side hustle and every pocket of the day must be filled with something useful. But what if absolutely nothing is the most useful thing you do?

The Italians have a phrase for it: Dolce far niente—the sweetness of doing nothing. It’s not laziness; it’s an art or even a skill. It’s the ability to sit, breathe and exist without needing to check, achieve or accomplish anything.

When was the last time you let your mind wander without guiding it toward a task? When was the last time you allowed yourself to be bored, truly bored, without reaching for a screen to fill the silence?

Science has proven that our best ideas seem to come to us when we aren’t trying. Creativity thrives in stillness. Stress melts away when we stop chasing the next thing.

Nature intensifies during summer. Every plant, animal and ecosystem is in high gear and makes the most of the warmth before the cycle shifts again.

How Do Plants Survive The Heat

Although the summer sun fuels growth, too much heat can be dangerous. Plants use transpiration — a process in which they release water through their leaves — to cool themselves.

Some plants, such as sunflowers, track the sun throughout the day to maximize their energy intake. Meanwhile, desert plants, such as cacti, adapt by storing water and reducing their leaf surface area to minimize moisture loss.

Why Insects Rule The Summer

Have you ever noticed how mosquitoes, fireflies and cicadas seem to take over during summer? Warmer temperatures accelerate insect metabolism, making them more active and abundant. Fireflies use the season to flash mating signals, and cicadas emerge after years of being underground and
then fill the air with their unmistakable summer chorus.

The Science Of Summer Storms

Summer heat fuels powerful thunderstorms as warm air rises rapidly, cools and then condenses into storm clouds. The clash of humid, rising air and cooler atmospheric layers creates dramatic lightning displays and sudden downpours.

Why Summer Makes Us Happier

More sunlight boosts our serotonin, the brain’s "happiness chemical," and increased Vitamin D supports our mood and energy. Studies also show that people feel more adventurous and social during summer,
which likely is due to longer daylight hours and increased outdoor activity.

Every sunset, every gust of warm wind and every distant rumble of thunder is part of an ancient rhythm that reminds us to embrace the fleeting magic of the season before it fades again.

Magnesium doesn’t get the hype of calcium or vitamin D, but it’s one of the most essential minerals for overall health—and nearly 50% of Americans don’t get enough of it. This powerhouse nutrient supports everything from brain function to heart health, yet it’s often missing from modern diets.

Why Magnesium Matters

Better Sleep: Magnesium helps regulate melatonin, the hormone that controls sleep cycles. Studies show it improves sleep quality and reduces insomnia symptoms.

Stress And Anxiety Relief: Magnesium plays a key role in nervous system function, helps calm the body and reduces cortisol, the stress hormone.

Muscle Heart Health: Magnesium supports muscle relaxation, prevents cramps and helps maintain a steady heartbeat.

Stronger Bones: While calcium gets most of the credit, magnesium is essential for maintaining bone density and reducing the risk of osteoporosis.

How to Get More Magnesium

Many processed foods are stripped of magnesium, but you can boost your intake naturally by eating:
• Avocados
• Dark leafy greens, such as spinach and kale
• Dark chocolate (yes, really!)
• Nuts and seeds, such as almonds and pumpkin seeds
• Fatty fish, such as salmon and mackerel

For those who struggle to get enough magnesium through diet, supplements , such as magnesium glycinate or citrate, can help, but always check with a doctor first.

Small changes can make a big difference—getting enough magnesium might be the simplest way to sleep better, stress less and feel more energized.

In a small coastal town, an elderly woman spent decades running the local antique shop. Every April, she would close her store for two weeks – not for vacation, but for what she called “the renewal.”

Visitors often wondered why she dedicated so much time to spring cleaning when her shop already sparkled. Her response was always the same: “I’m not just cleaning, I’m rediscovering.”

Each year, as she moved each piece in her shop, she would find something extraordinary – a hidden hallmark on a silver teapot, a forgotten note tucked in a vintage book, or simply a new way to display an overlooked item. These discoveries often led to the most remarkable sales of the year.

But her greatest insight came when a young apprentice asked why she didn’t hire others to help speed up the process. She smiled and explained, “Some treasures can only be found by slowing down. Each piece needs to be held, considered, and appreciated anew. Sometimes the most valuable discoveries aren’t the items themselves, but the fresh perspectives we gain when we take time to truly see them again.”

Like those antiques, our lives often hold unexpected treasures – insights, opportunities, and possibilities that only reveal themselves when we pause to look at things with fresh eyes.

Psychologist Dr. Richard Wiseman studied "lucky" and "unlucky" people for more than a decade. His research found that luck isn’t just fate; it’s a mindset. “Lucky” people tend to share four key traits:

1. They notice opportunities. In an experiment, participants counted photos in a newspaper. The "lucky" ones spotted a hidden message saying, “Stop counting. There are 43 photos.” The “unlucky” ones missed it.

2. They trust their intuition. Neuroscientific studies suggest "lucky" people process patterns subconsciously and make quick, accurate decisions.

3. They expect good things. Optimistic people take more risks, persist longer and create their own opportunities.

4. They turn bad things into good things. Instead of dwelling on setbacks, "lucky" people reframe challenges and seek new paths.

Can you become luckier?

Science says yes. Here’s how:

• Make efforts to meet new people and expand your social circle. Many lucky breaks spring from casual acquaintances who introduce new opportunities.

• Embrace the unexpected. Changing routines increases chance encounters and fresh opportunities.

• Visualize success. A study in Psychological Science found that vividly imagining positive outcomes makes them more likely to happen.

Luck: Random Or Designed?

While pure chance plays a role, everyday luck is shaped by our thoughts, actions and openness to new possibilities.

In other words, luck  isn’t just something that "happens" to you. It can be cultivated by adopting a mindset that welcomes opportunities, trusts intuition and stays resilient in the face of challenges.

A man always bought oranges from a woman at the town market. She would weigh them on a scale and place them in a bag and tell him the price. After he paid, the man usually took one orange out of the bag, peeled it, and tasted one piece. Then he’d say, “This orange is sour,” and hand it back to the woman.

Then she would bite into it. “It tastes sweet to me,” she always said, but she gave him a few extra oranges to make up for it.

The man’s wife went to the market with him every day and saw this exchange happen time after time. One day she asked her husband, “Why do you do that every time? The oranges are always sweet.”

The man replied, “That woman hardly eats. This way I get her to eat one orange a day for her health.”

A merchant in a vegetable stall saw the exchange happen every day, too. One day she asked the woman, “Why do you let him get away with that? He always complains about your oranges, and you always give
him extra. Why do you put up with it?”

The woman smiled and said, “He always pays me a little extra when I weigh his bag. That way he can feed me and pretend I don’t know what he’s doing. His love pays for the extra orange.”

April showers do more than bring May flowers; they tell a fascinating story. Each raindrop begins as a tiny water particle clinging to dust in the atmosphere and then growing until it falls to refresh our soil and
fuel our life.

Fun fact: The smell of rain, called petrichor, comes from oils released by plants and soil. It’s nature’s way of saying, “Let’s grow!”

This month, take a moment to appreciate the beauty and purpose of every drop.