Many Paths, One Successful Career  Emergency Medical Management Associates

According to studies, mortality rates jump during the winter season — but if you live in Southern California, your concept of winter functions more on the scale of when and where you’re getting your holiday shopping done rather than when you need to pull your puffy down coat from wherever it is you stored it during last winter’s apocalyptic snow sto… Oh. That’s right. There is no snow storm for you.

Doing lunch on the patio? Even if it’s under a heat lamp, and or if you’re just watching the foliage go by from your car window, looking at nature offers stress relief in ways that your computer screensaver or that Instagram #tbt of your vacation to Cabo can’t. So go ahead, revel in the jacarandas falling everywhere. You might get angry that the sap got on your car, but at least you won’t be stressed.

The area is one of the most linguistically dense places in the country. There’s tons of different communities with all sorts of cultural backgrounds, and you’re bound to hear multiple languages being spoken on any random day. (At the very least, you have a rudimentary knowledge of the beautiful, dark, twisted fantasy we call Spanglish, don’t you?) Being bilingual is great for your mind — not to mention that the less people who pronounce it “Supple-veeda,” the better.

I know, I know, it’s like suggesting you hug a scorpion (because there’s no way that will end well) but if you’re stuck on the 405 for an hour in the morning, you can take the time to decompress, plan your day, listen to a motivational podcast, or vent out loud only to be heard by strangers who will never see you ever again.

If you live in an area of the world where you could, in theory, go to the beach in the morning, hightail it to the mountains for some skiing in the middle of the day, and then party it up in the desert at night, not only is that variety good for your workout routine (though the overexertion might do you in) but taking time off doesn’t feel like a staycation when you have so many great places to visit by car alone.

The verdict’s still out on exactly how much better eating locally is for you, but just think of how many restaurants you know that are touting some new-aged #truth. Also, that fresh kale you threw into your canvas tote at the farmer’s market will have more nutrients than something picked days or a few weeks ago. (Yes, if you want to be lax about what you consider “local,” In-N-Out could kinda sorta totally count.)