Environment is Everything

"It's just life, it will be over before you know it." Bedwetters

Environment is everything. I have already used Cordae's quote before but it is very fitting once again: “Your habits are based on your habitat”. This being said environment is often overlooked in everyday life. Personally I can grant most of my own successes to the creation of separate environments for different tasks.

For creating habits it can be of great help to have a structure to build off of. For example, if you want to initiate a studying habit it is a great idea to create a designated study space. This area should not be used for anything other than studying. This makes it easier for our brains to make the switch to work mode. When we sit at that specific desk it means we will work. If we sometimes spend our time on YouTube at that same desk our brain becomes conflicted. As soon as I want to take a break I try to change my location. I would either gravitate towards the couch or even the bed if I am feeling extra drowsy. This helps avoid the aforementioned conflict.

It can be hard to implement such environments though. For me I find that it is easier to create such environments when creating spatial novelty around myself. What I mean is that if I want to create a new environment at home, I will try to rearrange my interior ever so slightly. For some reason this flips a switch in my brain which makes me believe that I am now in a completely new setting and can thus do whatever I want. On a larger scale – moving to France helped me so much to force myself out of my nicotine addiction. When people met me they just believed that I do not smoke at all, this reenforced my will to keep going. I have to mention that these examples apply to me but they may be slightly more difficult to implement for others in different situations like people living in minuscule spaces, flat-sharing or simply being parents.

Having different environments for different tasks and activities is also a great way to build character. It can be a way to make it clear to ourselves that work and leisure should be separated. It is a way to enjoy things more, to be present. In my opinion being fully immersed in one single task is so much more enthralling than jumping through hoops to complete multiple different projects simultaneously.

I will now walk you through two environments that I have created for myself. Both motivate me to attack the task at hand. One is for working out, the other for studying. They are very much opposed in their outcomes, one calms me down and gets me into the work zone, the other hypes me up and gets my blood circulating faster. The structure is similar though:

Working Out:

Sometimes we are extra motivated to break down that muscle tissue, other times we would rather do anything else than even think about working out. The way I help myself to overcome this very human laziness is that I just put on workout clothes, turn on my speaker, take out the dumbbells and the yoga-mat. I proceed to play only energetic songs. If it is not too late I might have a coffee. This helps me to wake from my laziness and to get started. The friction of starting is minimised since I am already wearing the workout clothes and have taken out all the equipment. Undressing and putting the sweatpants back on is almost a bigger struggle than actually getting started.

Studying:

From the following ideas I got quite a few from Kharma Medic who has quite a few videos along the lines of “How I Manage To Study 4 Hours In A Row”. Four hours of studying can be excessive in some cases but there are still some solid tips from the Doctor. Firstly bring everything you could possibly need onto the study table, this includes schoolbooks, pencil cases but also coffee and snacks if a longer study session is planned. The idea is to avoid having the opportunity to leave the desk which can cause us to get distracted. Now that we are on the subject of distractions – throw that damn phone away from yourself. Some people say that it does not disturb them, but based on a study getting distracted makes the whole process more stressful and draining. So just put it out of reach. I usually try to just throw it far enough so that I would have to stand up to get it. This does the trick for me.

As seen in both examples to change my environment I act directly onto some aspects of my situation in a way to reduce friction in starting the task at hand. These actions have to be tailored to the person of course but it is quite simple to figure out – first imitate others, then develop an understanding of what you like and what you do not. Keep what you like, discard what you do not. Most of all – keep going.

This Week's Suggestions:

📃 Environment Design:

This article by James Clear explains through the example of organ donations in Europe how much environment can change a choice. It is a very entertaining read that shows once again how lazy humans are (which is not a bad thing by the way).

🎶 "Miss Hurricane" by Bedwetters featuring YASMYN:

This absolute banger of a rock song is by an Estonian band. The lyrics really compliment the music – "It's just life, it will be over before you know it." The singer, Jozels, is also a highly recognised Estonian electronic music producer. Anyway this song came to me as a complete surprise, I heard it randomly at a house party in Pärnu at about 3 A.M at which point I had to pull out the Shazam. I have had it on replay for a good week now.

Thanks for being here with me!