Hi everyone,
I want to talk about how weather affects our moods and even personality today because a friend is visiting me from a colder country and we got to discuss this a bit. So I wanted to learn what you think.
A warning before I start, though: whatever I write here is about how the weather might affect us and not how it ‘determines’ our personalities and moods, because there are oh so many other factors. So, please do not take it as an absolute statement but rather as patterns. Ok, so here we go.
We are born with some personality traits and we obtain others from our environment. We can be affected by many things in our environment. Family is a big one. School is another big one. But weather is something too, I believe.
I live in a fairly sunny place all year round and people here are mostly relaxed and easy-going. They tend to smile and say ‘Hi’ even at 5 am in the morning (I used to go for a walk then). I think this is more common than most other places I have been to. But when I look at my home country, I can also see a similar kind of distinction: people in warmer places, which have sun all-year-round tend to be more chill. So it looks like to me that having sun consistently has some effect on how our personality is shaped.
The sun could even affect our daily mood. For me, the sun is a major reason for motivation and it gives me happiness. I work much better on sunny days, both mentally and physically. When there is no sun, especially if it is cloudy and gray, that is major reason to sleep in. The sun lights up all the colors and my mood. I know some people work better when the sky is gray and there are clouds. I actually wonder: if you are such a person, how does the sunny weather affect you? Does it motivate you? Does it make you want to stay home so you can avoid the sun (just like I want to stay home to avoid the grayness)?
How much do you think the sun affects us? Do you get affected at all? If so, how? Do you think these effects are temporary or could they have permanent, personality shaping effects? If they do, do you think they are changeable? For example, if someone moves from a cold country to a warm country, will they be more chill? I will say, I think moving into a warmer city kind of changed my approach to things. Let’s discuss!