Quick Trick To Get Out Of A Daily Rut
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Don’t you hate it when the clock goes fast? Your days go by, and you hit your head on the pillow each night feeling like you didn’t really accomplish anything. In creeps the existential dread, until you wake up the next morning and do it all again.
It’s not like we don’t have things that we want to do, in the traditional sense. You have a to-do list in your brain — maybe even a wish list.
I explored this idea of why we have a hard time doing what we “want” to do in a previous article, but here, I want to help you get out of the more daunting problem of every single day bleeding into each other without you actually doing anything truly fulfilling.
This is what I’m going to define as a “daily rut.”
There are a lot of things that we can do to shake things up in our lives and get out of the rut: doing to-do lists, setting an alarm, identifying goals for ourselves, etc. These are all good things to try, but unfortunately…they’re not always sustainable. What happens if you sleep in? What if you forget to make your daily to-do list? What if something happens one day that throws a monkey wrench into your plans? Thus, back to the rut you go.
So, you need a trick.
The Actual Trick
It’s so simple, that it’s kind of stupid. But it works. It always works.
Today, choose one new thing to try. Do something different. Today. As soon as possible. It doesn’t have to be big, or time-consuming. Do it for multiple days, as often or as infrequent as you need to do it.
Boom. That’s the trick. Do. Something. Different.
I know. Why write a whole article about one dumb little thing? Well, it’s because the trick has more to it than meets the eye.
Why Does It Work?
It’s non-committal. You’re not asking your brain to form a new daily habit that it has to extend energy towards. However, it breaks your routine in a way that shakes your world just enough.
Think of a snow globe. Do you have to make it snow in the ball by throwing it across the room? Do you have to shake it every minute of the day? Nope. You just give it a little sh-sh kind of shake, and it starts snowing for a good amount of time. That’s what this trick does.
But remember that even the simple act of getting a snow globe going requires a particular technique. If you don’t shake it hard enough, it’s not going to go. Again, the same applies to this trick.
When choosing to do something new, it has to be a conscious act. You have to do it knowing that you’re intending to shake up your world and get out of a rut.
Also remember that your brain is wired to resist change. Even a simple thing is going to require you to push past some discomfort. “But I always get this sushi roll!” your brain will tell you. “I always watch this TV show at night!” “I always drink my coffee BEFORE my shower!” “I always play this game on my phone on the subway!”
To that, I say keep it simple. Your brain puts you in a rut because ruts are safe and predictable. However, ruts don’t take you down the path you want to go in life. Plus, nothing happens if you don’t change — that’s just a simple fact of nature.
The trick is not about making your life just a little weirder each day for no reason. It’s about training your brain to open up to change. When your brain is more comfortable with change, it will be easier for you to take bigger leaps that you may be thinking: I need to upend my whole morning routine. I need to find a new job. I have to adjust my life to focus more on my kids. I need to finally sign up for that cooking class.
You’re not going to feel the effects right away, but the effects will begin immediately. It’ll be like a whisper, like a seed growing into a plant each day.
The best way to implement this in your life is to replace a task that you normally do with your something-new thing. This requires some self-awareness — what do you do?
Be aware of your body and mind. Notice what you want, and what it tries to tell you.
Remember — the goal isn’t to fix your whole life, but to trick your brain into liking change.
Now, let me close this article with something to really motivate you to do the trick. Some people need it. Shake your snow globe.
Ready? Okay. Three, two, one…go!
