NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Lifestyle

Louise Thompson: New kettles and niggles

Louise Thompson
By Louise Thompson
NZ Herald·
18 Nov, 2012 08:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Clearing the small niggles leave you with more energy for the big ones! Photo / Thinkstock

Clearing the small niggles leave you with more energy for the big ones! Photo / Thinkstock

Louise Thompson
Opinion by Louise Thompson
Louise Thompson is a columnist for Bite.
Learn more

I bought a new kettle this week. A fancy glass one with four pre-set temperatures. I know, I know, we are living life on the edge here at Thompson Towers.

The old kettle was so old and tired the on switch wouldn't stay on. How annoying is that?

I had, however, developed a cunning little workaround of weighing down the on switch with the scrubby washing-up brush. Except then of course it doesn't turn off so I have to remember to go back in the middle of cleaning my teeth or whatever and catch it when it boils.

It was not until I had my shiny new kettle boiling away like a dream that I realised what a ridiculous time consuming rigmarole the old situation with the kettle was.

It annoyed me every single morning, and a couple of cuppa times throughout the day. Every day! For, I am embarrassed to say, about six months.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

And now. Ahhhhhhhh! Nothing. Kettle just boils. Just like that. Easy. Bliss. My day starts perfectly.

Why on earth did I wait so long to replace my sort of working but, let's face it, broken kettle? It was a drain on my energy and my attention three times a day, every single day.

The new kettle hardly broke the bank so it's not a money thing. And I am a pretty organised person so it's not a logistics thing. What then?

I have decided it's a "workaround" thing. Because I had a jury-rigged system that was working round the problem I put up with it for five months and 29 days longer than I would if the damn thing had just blown up.

Life I have discovered is full of these jury-rigged workarounds and half-arsed jobs.

Discover more

Opinion

Blog: Habits of happiness

31 Mar 08:30 PM
Opinion

Louise Thompson: Awareness of limiting beliefs

07 Apr 09:30 PM
Opinion

Blog: The gift of words

09 Dec 08:00 PM
Opinion

Louise Thompson: Checking life's temperature

02 Dec 08:00 PM

Things that sort of work but are basically an energy draining niggle every time we come into contact with them.

I made a niggle list. What in my day-to-day life was I putting up with that was an energy-draining annoyance? The certificates I had had framed but that had not actually made their way on to the wall but gathered dust by the wall. The posh oil pourer thing that doesn't pour properly, giving either a trickle or flooding whatever I am trying to cook.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The fact that somehow we only seem to have one wooden spoon so I am forever washing it up. The lack of a playlist for the gym on my iPhone that I only remember every time I pull my trainers on. And so on.

These are all teeny tiny things. Teeny tiny niggles. But when you are experiencing them two or three times a day or week they all add up to a cumulative low level irritation and a little bit of our happy, positive energy is leaked away.

What's interesting is that all these little niggles only seem to take five minutes or less, (and more often than not, little to no money) to fix. Inspired by the energy boost of the kettle I resolved to address my top five niggles this week. The certificates are up. I have three new wooden spoons. The playlist is done. The fancy oil pourer thing is in the bin. I can't believe how much clearer and lighter I feel! It's no coincidence that I have had an extraordinarily productive week.

By clearing some of the small niggles in life, energy drains are plugged allowing us the headspace to concentrate on the big issues. Try it this week and boost your energy!

Action Step

Write a niggle list. What are the top 10 things in your day-to-day life or environment that irritate you? The overflowing magazine rack where you can't find what you need? The broken zip on your favourite pants? The just too-bright bedside light on your side of the bed? Write them down and then address them, five this week, five next.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Clear the small niggles in your life to give more energy and headspace for the big ones!

Louise Thompson is a life coach, yoga teacher and corporate escapee. For more from Louise visit positivebalance.co.nz.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Lifestyle

Premium
Lifestyle

What is a 'cortisol cocktail', and can it really help relieve stress?

Lifestyle

'Comparable to therapy': Rich-lister Anna Mowbray quits social media

Premium
Lifestyle

Can ‘reparenting’ yourself make you happier?


Sponsored

Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

Premium
Premium
What is a 'cortisol cocktail', and can it really help relieve stress?
Lifestyle

What is a 'cortisol cocktail', and can it really help relieve stress?

New York Times: Wellness influencers say the concoction combats 'adrenal fatigue'.

17 Jul 06:00 AM
'Comparable to therapy': Rich-lister Anna Mowbray quits social media
Lifestyle

'Comparable to therapy': Rich-lister Anna Mowbray quits social media

17 Jul 05:00 AM
Premium
Premium
Can ‘reparenting’ yourself make you happier?
Lifestyle

Can ‘reparenting’ yourself make you happier?

17 Jul 01:00 AM


Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper
Sponsored

Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper

01 Jul 04:58 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP