We are humans and as such we are capable of everything and anything!
Yep, we are humans. And no, not all of us feel like superheroes all the time. Maybe very rarely. Maybe never. But.. have you ever stopped for a minute to think about how much human beings are capable of?
We are literally the almighty creatures. We can be absolute geniuses!
We can create things and stuff out of nothing. We are capable of absolute destruction to the very last atom. We keep searching and finding. We keep exploring the Earth. To its deepest, darkest secrets. For hundreds and even thousands of years.
And yet, we barely know our surroundings. Our planet. Ourselves.
Take the human body, for example. A body which develops with every living day, yet has not changed too much in the last few hundred years. Unlike modern medicine, which develops with every second. Not only we create new vaccines and treatments for many various diseases but we develop different approaches using both modern technology and ancient knowledge to find different ways of treating (and curing) cancer, brain tumours, mental illnesses; adjusting the lives of people with life-long diseases, paralysis, etc.
We (as humans) learned how to conquer mountain peaks (where levels of oxygen are minimalistic, to zero); swim in and explore the deepest points in the ocean where to that day nobody knows what we can possibly find; how to build a machine which can take us in the air; how to build different facilities for production of food and essential materials; entertainment; health and well-being; helping others; hospitals with all the equipment we have nowadays; facilities for education, accessible for every single person regardless of age, gender, etc.
And all of that simply created by humans.
Automation is the process which helped the human the most throughout the years and made possible for us to get where we are now.
Auto-motion, on the other hand, is something in which we get lost with every single second we spend on “auto-pilot”.
Everyone knows the feeling of being too tired or stressed or just… “not feeling it”. The “auto” mode.
The moments in which we don’t quite realise where we are, what we do, who is with us, etc. We know it – we are physically there, having a conversation with a dear friend, or colleague or presenting a new project at work, or simply shopping. We are fully conscious and responsive. But mentally… we are in a “break-time” mode. We are hidden somewhere. Somewhere in our subconscious.
Our brains only work on half or maybe even 1/3 capacity. Because we are tired, overwhelmed, unnecessarily exhausted. Seemingly for no reason.
The thing is – as beautiful, absolute genius creatures humans are, we’ve somehow managed to develop our ways of self-sabotaging our own ideas and approaches towards… everything, really.
We are the ones who are able to create an actual cure for cancer, for example. Instead, we create new viruses.
We can use technology in a way to help people. Instead, we use it to control and destroy.
And I’m not even trying to point fingers to global corporations and powers who control the whole internet usage.
I only speak about myself, about us. As humans.
We hold the whole knowledge of the world in our hands at least for a few hours every day. We literally have all available dictionaries, magazines, researches, books, articles… in our phones. We have access to almost every point of the world. We can talk in real time with people from the opposite side of the planet the same way as we can talk to our neighbours upstairs.
We can read and listen to all types of stories, podcasts, interviews, books, lectures, etc.
And we cannot (and do not) comprehend any of that.
For us, for our little tiny (yet absolute genius ever-developing) brains, all this information and possible knowledge, presented and given to us freely… is just impossible to take in. We keep scrolling in order to put our minds at ease, instead we keep binging on dopamine sources only to boost our own levels of dopamine, despite the fact that it does exactly the opposite, and this is simply a never-ending game.
Scrolling through IG, Tiktok, FB, etc. is diving into 40,000 different worlds for just one hour. Absolutely different posts, completely opposite topics. Yet, our brains absorb all these “vibes” and we get addicted to this. The more the brain takes in, the more it wants. The more it knows, the less it knows.
We have the priority of having a constantly developing and re-shaping organ, which on the top of everything else is our main organ (a.k.a – everything else depends on it – all functions of all organs, as well as the basic body functions such as mobility, sleep, breathing, senses, etc.). We can literally change our brains, starting today.
Right now, in this moment of reading our brain is re-shaping, different work centres light up and start working, new neurotransmitters are created.
And yet… people seem not to go out of their way. They somehow prefer to get kind-of-stuck and stay comfortably in one place especially at a certain age, thinking: “let them youngsters develop and learn, I’ve learned what I had to, now I’m too old for starting new things/ continuing my personal development”. Somehow, even if we are able to hold the whole universe in our hands, we are still with the mindset of “I can’t do this”.
We still struggle with organising our days, our thoughts. We still indulge in things we love the most and more specifically are used to doing, and avoid “the hard work”. We still struggle with procrastination and therefore – self-motivation.
One thing we don’t struggle with is self-sabotage.
Unfortunately nowadays what I’ve noticed is how well people self-sabotage themselves. In a way in which nobody else can possible do.
An easy example from our every day life: we are well-aware of the fact that we have a project to do. For months. At the last week of assessment, we still haven’t done anything on the project. We live for days with the thought of this project somewhere at the back of the mind. In the last three days we start shaking out of anxiety and the poisonous thoughts come to the surface. In the last day, we might sit down and overcome the inner battles, fighting to blood on the inside but in the end – manage to finish the project and finally send it (last minute, literally). Or option 2 – not bother with the project at all and live with anxiety for the whole duration of it, as well as after the final date – simply because we know we could’ve done it, but… we didn’t. For no reason.
It’s the same with basic tasks – we always have the choice of eating the healthier option instead of buying a processed meal with 984378745 calories, none of which good for the body and mind. Choosing to take a shower in the morning, instead of sleeping late. Waking up early/ when we’ve had enough sleep instead of lying in bed all day. Cleaning a little bit every day instead of cleaning once per week/month (just because it’s already absolutely needed). Go to the gym/ out for a walk/ any activity really for an hour, instead of sitting on the sofa scrolling on Tiktok or 2,5 hours straight.
The thing is, our brains have changed in the last few years in a way it gets the levels of dopamine a lot faster through the screen and a lot slower… without a screen.
How many people are there who still prefer to read a book rather than watch a movie/ play a game on their console/ scroll on their phones/ watch videos, etc.?
We don’t meet with others as often as we did before. We don’t spend as much time in nature anymore. We don’t appreciate the silence or natural sounds.
We don’t look around us.
Because we are busy looking down.
To the screen.
To me self-motivation and discipline are incredibly difficult, always have been. But we have to start somewhere, possibly at the beginning of our learning journey.
- First of all – contrary to the mass believe – self-discipline and motivation does not come from restrictions. In fact – quite the opposite – in many cases self-rewarding* is a main factor in self-discipline.
- Second thing – self-assessment. And I don’t necessarily mean deep psychological evaluations (although if you’re capable of it, why not). What I mean is basic understandings of the personal needs, beliefs and goals.
- What do I need in my life – right now, in 5 months, in 2 years? (People/ solitude/ education/ certain type of work/ car or a van to travel/ a house or flat to stay put/ etc.)
- How do I want to perceive the surrounding world? (Do I want to be open to new people, places and experiences? Do I want to be protected from them? Maybe both? Do I want to be calm and mindful or do I want to stress over every single thing which comes to me? Do I want to get to know myself more or do I feel good enough knowing not too much about myself and my body?)
- What would I like to accomplish in the next… (hour, day, month, 5-10-30 years)?
- What (at this moment) could stay in my way to accomplish my goal? (What can I do to change/ shift/ remove it, so it’s no longer in my way?)
- Third thing is – reasons. Are they personal? Do I want this for me or do I want this for something/ somebody else?
- Fourth – self-rewards. Very, very important part of the journey. In order to get something done, I know I will earn even more than I initially thought, when first started my journey to self-improvement.
And so, self-discipline is built on a few different components. I will try to put it shortly.
Get yourself familiar with what you would like for yourself. Is it to be surrounded by friends or family at home, or you need some time away from everyone. Even for a couple days. Maybe you can’t afford going for a travel – where can you possibly find peace in solitude?
Your room?
That awesome place you know in your town?
Maybe a place you used to go with you mom/ gran/ ex?
Maybe even a favourite train-station/ bakery/ hill/ riverside?
Maybe even it’s not just one place.
Whatever it is, think of it, think about it and start spending time there. Even if not every day at first, try to spend 30-40 minutes, 1 hour, 3 hours in your place. Where you feel comfy, in peace and in those 30-40 minutes nothing else matters. Just you and your place.
Once you are there, you’ll be able to see everything more clearly, the thoughts – seemingly so chaotic at first, will start getting into place very quickly.
For me it’s always been easier to put my thoughts on paper. Any type – even if I don’t have my notebook, I usually have my phone, so I can always write down a few words. Journaling is what makes everything a lot easier to process. Our thoughts are so many, so different and sometimes so overwhelming that we feel the need of escaping from our heads. This is why I’d much rather sit down and write them, even if not in a composed text – just random words and sentences on paper… I get them out of my head and this is what made a MASSIVE difference to me.
Especially when I managed to create a habit of actual journaling.
It began as just a couple words here and there, and I’m not going to lie here – it felt super corny and mainstream. Although nobody had (and still no one has) access to them, I felt… weird, the least, of writing random words in a brand new notebook. Kind of felt as if I was ruining the notebook at first. It wouldn’t be too much if I say it was a bit guilt-tripping.
Anyways, started off with something like: “03/02. 8,30 am. I woke up, brushed my teeth, made my first cup of coffee and am now looking through the window. Will go to the gym in 2 hours and then maybe do some yoga. Will write later again. (___) 11,30 am. I went to the gym, felt super strong today, lifted (..) and squatted (..). Didn’t do any yoga but will prepare a meal. Will meet with (…) later. Maybe will write tomorrow again” and this continued for a while until I realised I am in a place where I’d write numerous pages in essay form or I’d write poems, I’d even write song lyrics. Depends on the sleep I had the previous night, the events happening the last few days, or simply on my mood.
So big, strong advice -start journaling even if it takes 2 words per day. It’s worth it.
Then, with journaling, I started thinking about things I’d like to journal about. What did I have in my mind which I wanted to put on paper? Different events? Experiences? At that time nothing much was happening around me, really, it was the home-work, work-home schedule daily, weekly, monthly. I didn’t meet with friends too often and when I did, it didn’t last for more than a couple hours.
One thing I was doing, though, was going to the gym. And not just “going to the gym” but I started Crossfit. For people who don’t know, super briefly – a sport combining every-single-thing as movement, super challenging and dynamic, as well as super mindful and focused on every single component (flexibility, mobility, strength – primary and secondary, endurance, speed…). Also – super-duper fun!
So I started writing about my personal experiences there, my feelings during the sessions, etc. and that led me to starting a second journal – tracking my activities in detail and the consequences of them. So this gave me a massive, super important benefit – having a goal in my life. I wanted to get better, I wanted to improve, I strived for more. For the first time in ages I felt the need of pushing myself – FOR myself.
And so, the wheel started spinning. I had my inner motivation for my inner ambitions and goals, as small as they might seem to someone, they were HUGE for me. I wanted to be able to prove myself TO myself, not to anyone else. From there, I started setting other goals. And finding different ways of completing them. The more I did, the more I wanted to do.
With every (even minor) task I had completed, I gave myself a reward I knew I was going to appreciate – take my partner to a place we both love; have an awesome meal which I wouldn’t cook just any day; take a day off from everyone and everything; buy myself a book from my favourite series, etc.
Alonsy Around The World 