Reject Mediocrity #9: All in a Breath
Hello π and welcome π to the 9th edition of the newsletter. I am resuming this after a hiatus of a month.
Despite my claims of cracking the motivation code, it is obvious that I still struggle with consistency. I guess it is a human condition you must accept.
My pursuit to reject mediocrity in everyday life led me down the rabbit hole of looking for a scientific approach to beat human evolution. But the drivers of human behavior are not exact and methodical. We are complex organisms with deeply intertwined layers of emotions, biases, struggles, needs, and cravings, almost like an onion.
We have so many layers that often, we donβt even realize what is causing us to act in a specific way.
Think of the last time you had a silly fight with your partner or friend or spent hours on TikTok. Do you remember what triggered those actions?
Do you remember the last time you were in a rut, losing the will to act? You might have known exactly what to do to get moving but did not feel like doing it.
We have all been there.
We keep hurtling from one cheap pleasure to the next. We may start with a reel, move on to YouTube, take a junk food pit stop, and end up binging Netflix.
We can talk all day about rejecting mediocrity and self-regulating dopamine. But, unless we know how to stop this self-sabotaging cycle IN the moment we engage in it, all else will fail.
So the question is, we want to exercise, do cold showers, and all the other good-dopamine behaviors, but how do we START? How do we get going when nothing seems to be working?
As I pondered this, my attention went to my breath, and I had my answer.
A technique that is so simple yet so profound.
Here is how I broke the βcheap dopamineβ loop I was in, and so can you:
Get into the habit of noticing your breath. Thats it.
Try it right now - it will take less than a minute: Stop everything else and focus on your breath. Close your eyes if that feels easier. Notice the in-breath, followed by the out-breath. Notice how the touch of breath feels on the inside of your nostrils. Donβt try to change your breathing pattern; stay with its natural flow. Spend a minute with your breath - get to know the feeling. Now get back to reading.
Start doing this a few times every day. It takes less than a minute.
When you wake up, after your shower, while eating breakfast, mid-way through work, during a workout, on a walk, etc. It is so simple it can be done anywhere and everywhere.
Yet, this simple activity is a superpower. Every time you observe your breath for no reason, it centers you in the present moment and floods your brain with a deep sense of awareness.
The days will feel longer and more fulfilling as you fill your days with these little points of awareness instead of going through your day mindlessly.
And the next time you get your fix of βcheap dopamine,β take your attention back to your breath. That little point of self-awareness is all we need to break the loop. You donβt even need to stop doing your activity. Just keep noticing your breath at the same time.
You will notice you stop deriving as much pleasure from the βcheap dopamineβ activity as you might have wanted. As a result, that compulsiveness to keep doing it reduces, and you can stop.
It may not happen the first time you do it, but you will notice the gradual lowering of the need to engage in cheap dopamine.
This will set you on a path to getting out of any rut you find yourself in - one breath at a time.
And thatβs a wrap!
Time's Upβ
That's my 3 minutes with you this week.
See you next week. π
Thanks again π, and please share this with a few friends if you like it. That is the only way I am growing right now.