Outer space drives a wonder into me. Whether it’s the fact that there are over 100 million billion stars in the observable universe or that objects floating through space have relative speed.
An asteroid could sit in space for eternity in the exact same state if there is no external force driving it.
The same forces drive our minds. If we do not feel some kind of stimulus, we will not change.
Comfort Is A Lie
Sometimes we think that small comfortable changes will be enough to fix us.
While small changes can be good, usually the small changes that come with a little friction are the ones that are worthwhile.
Think about building a new habit. If you want to build a habit of workout on your lunch break, doing it for 1 day may seem like an easy and comfortable adjustment. Now try to do it every day for a year.
All of a sudden that comfortable small adjustment is feeling like a larger one.
Smaller adjustments can sometimes be more challenging because it requires us to have a higher belief in that what we are doing is worth it. It may take longer to reach your end goal and progress will feel stagnant at times.
Friction will hit us no matter how we try to attack it.
It can be slowly chipping away at something or doing something big. There will always be mental friction.
Your Anxiety Is A Signal
This post isn’t intended to be about how to manage your anxiety. I’m not qualified to give that advice.
However, our anxieties can be a signal to us that something in our life is changing or needs to change.
Our bodies are always looking for homeostasis. When we get knocked off balance whether it’s physically or mentally, we try to get back to equilibrium.
Instead of letting your anxiety rebound you back to where you used to be, ask yourself why it’s happening.
Are you afraid?
Why are you feeling this way?
Our anxieties are there for a reason, whether they’re rational or irrational, we should try to listen to them. Figure out why you are feeling this way and if it is valid to dismiss it or not.
A Frictionless Life Does Not Exist
“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.”- Bruce Lee
We experience some sort of friction around every corner of life.
It can be getting out of bed in the morning. It can be going to your job. It can be putting your shoes on to go for a run.
There’s no point in trying to have a frictionless life because friction will inevitability be there.
The true paradox is to create a more frictionless life is to embrace the friction. Friction smoothes things out. Things might be rough and jagged at first but after a while, the friction will smooth out and so you’ll be able to handle it more efficiently.
How do neuron pathways form? Through friction. Neuroplasticity only occurs when the neurons are hit with errors. Our brains are plastic but they are not always plastic. Neuroplasticity isn’t something that happens all the time. We need intentional practice and to make mistakes for it to occur.
Next time you feel mental friction, remember this could be your brain overcoming its past habits. Lean into the friction to make change become real.
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There will be friction everywhere in life. Learn how to lean into it instead of running away from it. Try not to become the person at an old age who doesn’t want to change their ways because they don’t like the friction of learning something new.
Every time we feel some sort of mental friction or anxiety from something, it can act as a signal that we need to take action.
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This post was previously published on medium.com.
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