|
Understand some of the roots of poor motivation
Sunday, 11 November 2007
I was in a gym class today lifting barbells, when I looked around. You could see everyone was having a hard time of it. I attend that same class regularly, and it's common to get people who turn up a couple of times and then never come back. If you just look at the obesity epidemic, it's clear a lot of people don't get as much exercise as they should.
Why is it that so many of us humans find it so hard to get regular exercise? What is it in our nature that makes it so much effort to do what we know we should?
I think a large part of the answer lies in our heritage. We're all used to living in the modern world, but that's not the environment our bodies were designed to live in. Indeed, our lifestyles are alien to whoever or whatever built us had in mind when they did so.
Let me elaborate.
Human beings who were exactly like us have been around for about 200,000 years. For most of that time, they lived as hunters and gatherers. Sleeping under the stars and using the most basic of tools. These "cave-people" were exactly the same as us, physically and mentally. They were us, just thrown into different circumstances.
Compared to this, the time line of Ancient Egypt, Rome, and Medieval Europe are recent. The explosion of change in the last hundred years is just a blip. Even agriculture, the most basic of civilized traditions, is only about 10,000 years old.
Your body and mind were designed for very different circumstances than the ones you live in.
So what's this got to do with how difficult it is to go to the gym?
Well, if you think about it, this sort of exercise would be an insane undertaking for a hunter/gatherer. Why would any such person undertake physical work and activity that didn't directly contribute to their survival? And by directly contribute I mean with the benefits arriving this week at the latest - whether that be eating, drinking, or making a spear. Indeed, such people were forced into enough physical activity just trying to get by.
Is it any wonder that your body insists it get a rest whenever such an opportunity arises? It's expecting you to desperately need it.
You can see similar problems in other areas of life. Modern cities require us to deal with strangers daily, yet many people find this scary or stressful. But if you think back to being a tribes-person, this reaction makes perfect sense. In such an environment it would be very rare to come across strangers. And if you did, they likely presented danger. No wonder your mind finds dealing with them stressful.
When you think about the lifestyle you were designed for, compared to the lifestyle you actually live, many of the self-defeating behaviours you engage in can make more sense. You can finally understand the cause of the problem.
And as the old saying goes: a problem properly understood is a problem half-solved.
 | The four measures of financial success | | If you want to do well financially, you must first understand what it is you have to achieve. It's not just a matter of making more money. Instead, there are four factors you must consider. | | Ten good rules-of-thumb for investing | | I've been investing money for about 14 years now and have had more success than failure along the way. I've also read a large number of books and articles on good investment strategy. Here are my rules-of-thumb if you want to get ahead in the investment game. |  | For proof of your own potential genius, just look around you | | What is the difference between you and a person struggling to scratch out a living from nature 50,000 years ago? Biologically, nothing. You are essentially identical. You just got lucky in the draw of history and were born into the modern world. But how this modern world was built must be the greatest story ever told. There we were a few thousand generations back, dropped naked in the dust. And he we are now, flying into space, building the internet and destroying deadly microbes. |  | Chance plays a big part in our lives | | There is a modern fad for claiming that we are entirely to blame for anything that happens to us. This philosophy is complete nonsense, as anyone who thinks about it even for a moment can surely deduce. Our decisions do play a part in our lives, but chance has a just as large, if not a larger, influence. |  | How to find yourself | | Along with the problem of trying to figure out how the world works, we also all have a similar problem of discovering exactly who it is we are. People are always surprising themselves with behavior they didn’t expect and thoughts they feel aren’t entirely in their control. | | Six steps for learning difficult subjects quickly | | Here's a strategy I've found useful for learning dry and difficult material quickly. At various times, I've used it to build up my knowledge of subjects like economics, investing, writing and computer programming languages. Some people have been surprised at how fast I can learn these kinds of skills, but I think anyone can do it with the right plan. | | Five facts of life to be a bit philosophical about | | There are a lot of things about the world that aren't as most of us would probably wish them to be. |  | Bring on the bad news | | A common problem for people who are unsuccessful is that they slavishly avoid bad news. If such news has to be received, they prefer to put it off as long as possible. Often, they prefer to dodge it altogether. | | A key secret of effectiveness | | What is effectiveness exactly? It's a special term that can sell a million books, and make or break a commercial enterprise. It's a key difference between the average and the successful in this life. And the main secret of it is as simple as it is powerful. | | Don't forget to live a little sometimes | | Modern Western culture is obsessed with the benefits of hard-work. Sometimes, it seems to consume our lives. We put in all sorts of hours improving ourselves and our financial situation in order to "get ahead in life". |
New articles are being added all the time, so make sure you bookmark Paul's Tips and come back.
|
|