The Battle of Being

It's been two weeks since I arrived in Canada. I would say I can lead a somewhat normal life now. I know where to get groceries, how to go to class and where to go thrifting.

This completely new space is, as always, a good place to change up some things. The environment we create for ourselves, in my eyes, is a crucial part of how good or bad we feel on a day-to-day basis.

I like to use physical cues to create friction or remove it depending on whether I want to keep a habit or remove a bad one. I can not take credit for the concept. It is mostly ideas from James Clear and Chris Bailey that I have messed around with. Here are three specific ideas that I have implemented throughout the past few years that work for me:

• If I have fresh produce at home and no snacks, then I will simply be cooking more fresh meals, even if it is more of a hassle at times
• If I put my phone charging on the other side of the room and not next to my bed, I will reach for a book in the evening and have to stand up to turn off my alarm in the morning. This promotes no scrolling in bed and standing up right away in the morning.
• If I prepare my running or sports clothes the evening before, it will be the first thing I see in the morning, and all there is to do is to put them on and head out.

These are things I do now without much thought, but if creating a new habit, one thing I like to do is tracking. Making a little cross every time that I do something is wildly satisfying – creating a habit streak is motivating to keep going.

Once you do a thing enough times, your brain is conditioned by it. It starts craving it. I have this with working out. Since my arrival, I have been very inconsistent due to various reasons, but every three days or so my body tells me that I need to move, and so I go for a run.

Fortunately, now I will have volleyball practise and, apparently, through being a member of the team, I get a discounted gym membership. This will make working out way easier for the rest of the semester.

Here are a few questions to ask oneself in this context. How do you condition yourself? What are things that require more friction, and what requires less friction?

This Week's Suggestions:

💡 "Hyperfocus" and "Atomic Habits":

These are the books that I read at the end of high school and at the start of my adventures in France. They are not mandatory in any way and have also been classified as toxic productivity, but as with everything, I find there to be some very interesting thoughts and approaches that I did not think of earlier.

🎶 "LAZY at FLAT 22" by salameh and Jolo remixed by ruso:

This song I found through an Instagram story of a roommate in Liège. Unexpected little gem. The simple yet powerful melody is what gets to me.

Have a great start to your week!