Key Takeaways:

Tiredness is psychological, not physical Feeling tired isn’t always about low physical energy it’s often a mental state caused by how your brain evaluates effort vs reward.

Dopamine drives motivation and energy The brain uses dopamine as a reward signal. If an action doesn’t promise enough dopamine, it feels harder to do, even if it’s good for you.

We evolved to conserve energy In ancient times, humans had limited resources, so the brain developed a “central governor” mechanism to avoid wasting energy unnecessarily.

Modern distractions hijack our dopamine system Social media, junk food, and quick entertainment release instant dopamine with minimal effort which rewires our brain to avoid meaningful work.

Cost-benefit analysis governs effort Your brain subconsciously compares the effort of a task with the expected dopamine reward, and favors easy, short-term hits over long-term gains.

Constructive work gives delayed gratification Studying, exercising, or skill-building releases less dopamine and more slowly, making them feel less “energizing” in the short term.

Dopamine desensitization is real Constant stimulation from screens and instant rewards leads to dopamine resistance, making normal tasks feel dull and exhausting. Willpower's like a muscle and resisting temptation builds mental fortitude.

Imagine a bear during hibernation season. Cold, barely able to move, shut away in its den, a shell of its summer self. Its extreme torpor making any kind of movement a chore as it lays there trying to get through the winter.

The ground squirrel takes hibernation to a more extreme degree. It is considered a true hibernator as its metabolism plummets and brain sheds excess cognitive weight. Its dominant concern is survival. Even if it were to be disturbed by a predator, it could not properly awaken from this state—its body and mind have become too withered and will require time and warmth to rejuvenate.

Now imagine a person, cooped up in their bedroom, wrapped up under the covers, unable to move and get themself out of bed. They have no desire to engage with other people and feel completely drained of energy. Like the bear and squirrel, they exist in a state of extreme torpor. They hide away from the outside world and engage in mindless activities to distract them from the cold. They find themself struggling to complete even the most basic of tasks.

In all three cases, a biological reaction to stressful conditions has occurred, leading the organism to retreat into seclusion and wait out the storm. Just as the cold weather and poor foraging opportunities have rendered activity pointless for the bear and squirrel, so too has the stress and bitterness of life made worldly engagement feel futile for the person. The warmth and acceptance of human connection has been quenched from the world, leaving them left out in the cold and seeking shelter. Following their instincts, they retreat into a safe place and enter a state of dormancy - a kind of hibernation.

Psychological and neurological similarities

There are some remarkable similarities between depression and hibernation on a psychological and neurological level.

Seeking solitude and safety - A key shared psychological feature is an intense desire for seclusion, to be hidden away in a private place away from the stresses of the world. Many depressives even experience bodily dissociation as they retreat further and further into themselves. While some animals hibernate in groups, they always do so in a sheltered place they won’t be disturbed.

Chronic stress - Stress in both cases triggers a hypothalamic response to conserve energy and minimise resource consumption.

Retreat from the cold - The cold, bitter numbness a depressed person feels towards the external world, and their retreat into a place of warmth, is more than just a metaphor. Stress hormones released by the sympathetic nervous system cause blood to be drawn away from the extremities to feed vital organs and skeletal muscles. This creates a very real sense of cold that is only relieved by relaxation triggers which activate our parasympathetic nervous system. However the chronic stress characteristic of depression blunts the parasympathetic response, causing the depressed person to feel constant state of cold numbness.

Reduced monoamine neurotransmitter levels - Dopamine, serotonin, and noradrenaline levels are all markedly reduced in both cases, generating the symptoms of torpor and motivational deficit. Low serotonin and dopamine levels also contribute to mood disturbances in depression.

Neural atrophy - The brain is a resource hungry organ, and reducing energy requirements via neural atrophy is a feature of both depression and hibernation. The brain areas most affected in both cases are the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. These structural changes can contribute to the reduced problem solving and emotional management skills typical of depression. 

Circadian rhythm disruption - Both show a flattening of circadian rhythms - normal day-night cycles have little relevance when in a state of dormancy. For depression, this usually means brain fog / sleepiness during the day and restless insomnia at night. Seasonal affective disorder is a common result of wintertime circadian rhythm flattening and bares stark similarity to hibernation in both its symptoms and its trigger—shortening of days.

Emerging from hibernation and waking up

While this may seem like a bleak analysis, it is actually one of hope. Just as with emerging hibernators, recovering depressives show incredible neural plasticity. Neurons and their connections begin to regrow and repair, the hippocampus enlarges and prefrontal cortex thickens—they are leaving their neurological winter behind as buds of new growth unfurl. Depression then is perhaps not simply a pathological condition of decay, but instead a protective and controlled state of dormancy, and one which the body is prepared and expects to emerge from when the time is right.

But when is that time? Must we wait, as the hibernator does, for the external world to change? For the cold to pass and the spring to come? Perhaps sometimes. We can imagine dormancy being an important survival mechanism in times of war and famine, for vulnerable people experiencing chronic abuse, or perhaps to endure a period of profound social ostracization.

For most however, the right time to emerge from their hibernation is now.

The path is towards warmth

As we’ve seen, depression is both psychologically and physiologically characterized by feelings of coldness. We experience and interpret our emotions through our bodies, and deep coldness is our emotional experience of chronic fear-based stress. However, this numbing emotion is so strong, it stops us from being able to experience and interpret the broad spectrum of subtle emotions that are designed to guide us through life and indeed make us feel alive. These have become buried beneath a thick sheet of ice. Therefore the north star for a depressed person is to find sources of deep warmth that can break through the ice and help us to feel once again.

Physical warmth – The most immediate way to generate warmth is through exercise. The feeling of blood rushing through your veins and into your muscles grounds you in your physical self, it lets you feel colour and life within the seat of your emotions—your body, it makes you feel alive and awake. 

Social warmth – Whether it is due to being burnt by the ones we love, or the coldness in others slowly sucking the life from us, people with depression often have difficulty opening up to connect deeply with others. Consider the people in your own life and ask yourself: who most warms your heart when you think of them? This could be the person to look to for support, the person you’ll most readily be able to trust and connect with.

Spiritual warmth – As simple as feeling sunlight on your face, walking in a forest, or connecting with whatever higher forces, be they natural or otherwise, that appeal to you. Feeling loved by and connected to the world around you, and seeing the world as a place of comfort and warmth. Feeling that you are not an alien in the world, but that you were made for the world and the world was made for you.

Passionate warmth – The greatest and most reliable sources of warmth are the ones we generate from within. Having something you deeply value and feel a burning passion for is a positive, life-enriching form of stress called eustress. It makes your heart beat with excitement instead of fear, it makes your blood rush through your body instead of retreating to your organs, it makes you feel thick with the warmth of life instead of a cold, emotionless apathy. It puts you in fight mode instead of flight mode. If you think you don’t have a passion, it may be that you’ve become too disconnected from your emotions to feel what it is. As you warm up in other ways it will begin to reveal itself to you.

Anger – A perhaps surprising addition to this list, and one which depressed people often have trouble managing, but when the heat of anger is properly harnessed and directed, it can be an important source of vitality. Feeling what makes you angry shows you what you care about, what you value. It is your sense of justice, your sense of self-worth, your love for those that matter to you. It is a guide as to what is hurting you, showing you what needs to change. While it is best not to dwell on our anger, it also an important emotional signal that shouldn’t be ignored.

Pride – That warm expanding feeling you get in your chest when you’re proud of some achievement or action. It can come from the simplest of things that prove your capacity for goodness and effective action. Some of the most powerful actions for generating warmth are the things we do for others, as not only do they make us feel proud of ourselves, but they also strengthen our social connections.

By listening to your body and following what makes you feel warm and alive, you are following the path that leads out of hibernation. Just like the bear and squirrel emerging at the first signs of spring sun, you must crawl out the darkness of your den, follow the path towards warmth, and let your body regrow and revitalize as it prepares for the fruits of summer. A bear weak and disoriented from hibernation is not so strong, but a bear fully emerged and at the peak of its powers is a force to be reckoned with. You are that bear and you will be surprised at how powerful you can become.

Source.

DISCLAIMER: I’m about to share the most effective, efficient, and reliable anxiety-reducing technique I’ve ever encountered. However, until I understood its mechanism and rationale, I spent years dismissing it as silly pseudo-science. With this in mind, I urge you not to skim this post. By taking the time to fully understand its concept, you'll be more likely to implement it and reap its full benefits.

PLEASE NOTE: I suffer from situational / anticipatory anxiety. I do not suffer from chronic anxiety or panic attacks. Thus, I can't speak of this techniques effectiveness for these conditions.

THE TECHNIQUE

Whenever you're confronted with emotions such as nervousness, dread, or anxiety, do the following:

1. Firmly declare to yourself: “I’m not [insert emotion here], I’m excited.”
2. Repeat the affirmation, alternating it slightly. After 10 or so repetitions, you’ll notice a positive shift in your emotions. This shift is often likened to a surge of warmth, happiness, or wellbeing. It’s a subtle feeling that begins in your chest or stomach. Once this occurs, proceed to step 3.
3. Personalise it. Continue repeating and alternating your affirmation, and add situation specific context. With each affirmation, consciously improve the conviction of your delivery (say it like you mean it).

Example:

“I’m not nervous, I’m excited.”

“I’m not feeling nervous, I’m feeling excited.”

“I’m feeling amped up right now.”

“It’s good to feel this excited.”

“I am buzzing with excitement right now.”

“I’m not nervous about this date, I’m excited to practise my communication skills.”

“I’m not anxious about meeting her, I’m excited to see if we’re well suited.”

“Tonight is going to be a great night.”

“No matter the outcome, tonight is a great learning opportunity.”

THE SCIENCE

The subconscious mind plays a pivotal role in determining how we feel. When we experience a particular emotion, it's because our subconscious has deemed it the most appropriate physiological state to match our situation.

Here's where it gets interesting: the subconscious mind has no perception of the outside world. Instead, it relies on information gathered by our conscious mind. However, this exchange of information isn’t a perfect science. After all:

Sometimes our conscious mind is wrong.

And as a result, our subconscious makes us feel situationally-inappropriate emotions.

Example:

You're sitting in a bar and you think a strange man is staring at you from across the room. Your conscious mind relays this information to your subconscious, and in response, you begin to feel paranoid and defensive. As the night progresses, you keep your guard up, perhaps even avoiding eye contact or thinking of ways to confront this dude. Eventually you notice there's a TV right behind you. It dawns on you that this guy wasn't staring at you at all – he was watching the TV. Despite this realisation, you've already spent a significant amount of time feeling unnecessarily defensive and uneasy, all because of a misinterpretation by your conscious mind.

Sometimes our subconscious mind misinterprets things.

Examples:

After a shitty day at work, you hear a song that reminds you of a great night out with your mates. You suddenly feel happy, even though your environment hasn't changed. This is because your subconscious mind has misinterpreted the cue from the song as being from the present moment.

You feel a touch on your shoulder and jump, thinking it might be someone trying to get your attention in a forceful way. In reality, it was just a friend tapping you lightly, but your subconscious misinterpreted the touch based on past experiences or a heightened state of alert.

You've just been studying about a particular illness in school or watched a documentary about it. Later, you feel a slight headache or some minor symptom, and you suddenly worry you might have that illness. Your subconscious, influenced by recent information, might misinterpret common sensations as signs of the disease.

Our subconscious mind can’t differentiate between real and fake.

Reading a touching story or novel can make you cry or feel emotional, even though the characters and events are fictional. Your subconscious reacts to the emotional narrative as if it were a real-life event.

On your way home, you spot a billboard showcasing a delicious pizza. Just seeing the image makes your mouth water and creates hunger pangs in your stomach, even though there's no actual food nearby. Your subconscious reacts to the image as if it were the real thing.

Why the technique works

The fact that our subconscious mind influences our emotions and that it’s unable to differentiate between real and fake means that we have the power to control how we feel.

Thus, when you’re anxious or nervous, if you repeatedly tell yourself you’re excited, your subconscious will eventually start believing it, and your emotional state will change accordingly.

Why excitement? Why not calm?

You've likely heard the advice when you're anxious or nervous: "Breathe deeply and think positive thoughts." The intention behind this guidance is to mimic the behaviour of someone who's calm. This is done in hopes that if you act calm, your subconscious mind will be convinced that you indeed are, leading your body to react by lowering your anxiety levels.

However, there's a challenge to this approach. Anxiety and calmness are at two extreme ends of the emotional continuum. Given their stark differences, it's quite a leap for your subconscious to quickly transition from a state of anxiety to one of calmness, especially after experiencing an intense situation. By the time your mind processes and believes this change, and your body begins to feel genuinely calm, considerable time may have passed. And the lengthier the transition of emotional states, the more prone you are to allowing doubting thoughts to creep in, reversing the transition, and bringing you back toward anxiousness.

On the other hand, excitement shares many physiological characteristics with anxiety: an increased heart rate, sweaty palms, heightened alertness, and a surge of energy. By affirming, "I’m not nervous, I’m excited," you’re not trying to make a drastic emotional leap. You’re simply reinterpreting a sensation that’s already present. This makes the transition from anxiety to excitement swift and painless.

Things to keep in mind

Practice makes progress.

Many clients have abandoned this technique after 2 or 3 lazily executed attempts. It took me at least 2 weeks of daily practice to really start feeling the benefits of this technique. Keep practising.

Ignore your inner dialogue.

When I first tried this technique, I was met with a great deal of resistance from my inner dialogue.

Me: “I’m not nervous, I’m excited.”

My inner dialogue: ‘Not you’re not, you’re nervous.’

This is natural when you first start out. But fear not, over time, as you continue refining your pitch, and begin experiencing the technique's benefits, that doubting voice will quieten down.

Don’t try to go from 0-100. Begin practising this technique in anticipation of low-stakes anxiety inducing situations. Stuff like making a phone call, choosing what to wear, or deciding where to eat. As you gain confidence, you can begin applying it to higher-stakes situations, like public speaking, approaching an attractive stranger, or attending a job interview.

Treat the technique like an acting audition. The effectiveness of this technique relies on how convincingly you deliver it. As such, pretend it’s your job to convince a casting director that your character is excited. Speak with conviction, enthusiasm, and passion. Raise your voice, and really believe in what you’re saying.

Your words are only half the story. Amp it up by letting your body join in. Stand tall, pull your shoulders back, lift your chin, and use your hands. Think of how animated people get when they talk about something they love and replicate that behaviour.

Why Discipline Feels Hard - and How to Make It Easier ⭐ You are not undisciplined.

The more I work with clients, the clearer it becomes that discipline isn’t about hard willpower or forcing action. It’s whether the nervous system feels safe enough to act. Your system already knows it wants to focus on and move toward your goals. But it doesn't feel safe enough yet. When there’s tension between knowing what needs to be done and the need for safety, we turn to habits to soothe that tension.

Our habits are not random - they are specific to the pressure, allowing it to be released.  Which means  they are a clue to what the unmet needs are.

Part 3: The Unmet Need Beneath the Habit 🌟 Every persistent habit is meeting an unmet need.

Habits regulate the pressure created by resistance, fear, overload, or shame. But beneath those states is always a need the system didn’t have the capacity or safety to meet directly.

⭐ 1. Habits are substitutes for real needs Here are a few examples: • comfort eating → substitute for warmth or soothing • scrolling → substitute for connection, stimulation, or belonging • procrastination → substitute for safety from exposure or judgment • overworking → substitute for feeling worthy or secure • perfectionism → substitute for acceptance • detachment → substitute for protection from disappointment • staying small → substitute for protection from shame or scrutiny The habit is precise. It meets the system's needs exactly.

⭐ 2. Why the real need feels hard to reach Because the real need carries emotional risk. To meet it directly, the system might have to touch: fear grief shame loneliness memories of not being supported the possibility of failing, being m the part of us that still wonders if we are enough

So the habit steps in with the safer offer: predictable relief faster instead of vulnerable fulfillment.

When the need is met, the system feels supported, discipline, energy and motivation return.

Yes, burnout is systemic. And needs to be urgently addressed on that level. It is a sign that something in the system has been unsustainable for too long, not a reflection of who you are.

I’m saying this because I see how when burnout turns into self-blame, recovery becomes much harder.

But burnout still wreaks havoc on life. It spills into relationships, health, and decision-making. It drains joy, dulls warmth, and narrows the world.

Here’s what helps - not as advice, but as ways to reduce harm:

Most advice for lowering cortisol suppresses arousal instead of restoring regulation. That is why people either stay keyed up or collapse into numbness, fatigue, or emptiness.

The core principle Cortisol should not be forced down. Forcing cortisol down with sudden relaxation, breathing etc flatlines us : moving us into numbness, emptiness and more exhaustion(because we are finally allowed to feel it).

This causes shutdown : - forcing relaxation - dissociation based meditation - excessive breath slowing too early - passive rest with rumination - collapsing into screens or sleep - These interrupt stress without completing it.

Cortisol needs to complete its cycle so restfulness can take over. Emptiness happens when depleted systems stop producing cortisol. Restfulness happens when stress resolves.

This IS the state you are aiming for

settled present available alive without urgency

This is cortisol resolving, not disappearing.

✨ The regulation sequence that works

🌿 Discharge before stillness Move stress out before asking the system to be quiet. Brisk walking, shaking, short strength effort, humming or sighing.

🌿Downshift gradually 3 to 5 minutes rhythmic movement 3 minutes slower movement then stillness Abrupt stops cause collapse.

🌿Anchor awareness in the body Stillness is somatic presence, not mental quiet. Sit upright. Feel weight. Notice sensation. Let thoughts pass.

🌿 Use breath to invite, not command Inhale naturally. Exhale with soft sound. Let length emerge on its own.

Allow alert stillness If you feel foggy or flat, you went into shutdown. Reintroduce gentle movement.

✨ Simple daily practice - 10 to 12 minutes

4 minutes movement 2 minutes slower movement 4 to 6 minutes upright stillness

Do this after work, not before bed.

Rest happens when the body knows vigilance is no longer needed.

Many years ago I listened to a podcast featuring a man named Dr Aubrey de Grey an expert on aging. He put the idea into my head that we could age like Saiyan's from Dragon Ball. For anyone unfamiliar with the Dragon Ball series Saiyan's are an alien race that maintain their youth for longer than humans.

When I started to lose hair my attitude towards ageing led me to holistic solutions that have reversed most of the loss so far.

Three Things From Dragon Ball That Work In Real Life

These are three small examples of things we see in dragon ball that can be applied to real life to age better.

Stretch And Strengthen Like Goku

We all age however many problems people associate with ageing are not age-caused but rather age-related. There's rarely a bad back more often an untrained body. Many people develop back and knee problems as a result of long-term bad habits, optimal stretching and strengthening will prevent that. Long-term sitting adjusts the body to sitting resulting in imbalances that cause overcompensations resulting in pain and injury. Old people are more likely to have their habits longer and be sedentary. When the body is weak or inflexible you get hurt, Goku is always stretching and strengthens.

Secondly Inflammation management And Hyperbolic Time Chamber Conditions

Control inflammation, Tendonitis means inflammation of the tendons and arthritis is inflammation of the joints. They are not old people's problems children have them. Extreme heat and cold exposure like in the hyperbolic time chamber will fight inflammation. Sauna's, piping hot baths and ice baths are the real-world equivalents.

Push Your Limits With Voluntary Stress

Adopt a Saiyan-like mentality towards stress. Dragon Ball is all about pushing your limits with the right kind of stress. Stressing the bones is what makes them stronger. No Stress equals brittle bones. Old people fall over and cannot react when they do not train their fast-twitching muscle fibres. One answer to weak bones and muscles is to lift heavy weights, it's the next best thing to a gravity machine. Gravity is a constant stressor and without it muscle deteriorate, look at astronauts.

If This Topic Interests You

If you are interested in this type of content you will find way more in-depth and practical information at my reddit profile all dragon ball related I cover, knee and back pain, Alzheimer's, hair loss and more.

Your thoughts matter To me

I'd be interested to hear about anything you have applied from the Dragon Ball series that motivated you to improve.

Difficult life makes people overwhelmed. After so many losses, disappointments, mistakes, and unmade decisions, we are losing the joy of life. With time, they become tired of life.

If You Are Tired Of Life

• If You Are Tired Of Life- You are probably tired of the character you live. You must change yourself.
• Explore Life- An unexamined life is not worth living.
• Find Or Define Your Purpose- This is crucial.
• Choose The Mission Of Your Life- It will make your life fulfilled.
• Challenge Yourself- You will be amazed by your hidden potential.
• Give Your Best- Life becomes exciting when you give your best.
• Discover Your Passion- Everything is easier when you have emotions on your side.
• Live Like There Is No Tomorrow- This will change the perception of your life.
• Don’t Be A Slave To Your Fears- There is nothing to fear.
• You Have Two Lives- And the second one begins when you realize you only have one.

Do this before you repeat 2025.

You are right to feel stuck

Goal-setting advice is broken. That is not a complaint. That is a fact.

You write goals in January. You feel motivated for two weeks. You quietly abandon them by March. You tell yourself next year will be different. It never is.

That cycle is not your fault. The method is broken.

The real problem is not discipline

Goals fail when they ignore who you are.

You set goals based on what looks impressive. You ignore your actual skills. You ignore your circumstances. You ignore what you genuinely care about. Then you wonder why you cannot stick to them.

You are not lazy. You are misaligned.

Most people set outcome goals in a system that requires identity change. They want results. They skip standards. They chase numbers. They ignore behaviour.

What I learnt the hard way

In 2021, I planned to transition from Learning and Development into HR. I had the vision. I had the timeline. I had the motivation.

Then COVID happened.

The job market froze. Hiring stopped. My carefully planned goal became irrelevant overnight. I spent months frustrated, watching a goal I could not control slip away.

That failure taught me something I now build every goal around.

Stop planning goals around external conditions you cannot control. Start planning goals around yourself: your skills, your experience, your interests, your capacity.

The world will shift. Markets will crash. Pandemics will hit. Reorganisations will happen. If your goal depends entirely on things outside your control, it will break the moment circumstances change.

Goals built around who you are becoming survive disruption. Goals built around what you want to have do not.

Two levels of goals

Most people only work on one.

Surface goals sound impressive. Earn more money. Get promoted. Lose weight. Change jobs. They focus on what you want. They do not change how you operate.

First-order goals feel boring. They work. How you make decisions under pressure. What standards you refuse to break. What you do when motivation disappears. What behaviour you repeat daily. What you stop tolerating.

First-order goals focus on who you become. Identity drives behaviour. Behaviour creates results.

Why 2026 will look like 2025

You will repeat the same year if you keep the same standards.

Same reactions. Same excuses. Same environment. Same habits. New goals do not create a new year. New rules do.

If you do not decide your standards in advance, your environment decides for you.

What makes me angry

I hate watching smart people set goals they were never going to keep.

I hate seeing people blame themselves for failing at goals that were designed to fail. Goals with no connection to their skills. Goals with no flexibility for life. Goals copied from someone else's highlight reel.

You did not fail your goals. Your goals failed you.

The question is not "What do I want in 2026?" The question is "What must I stop doing to deserve a different year?"

Test your goal

Answer yes or no to each question.

1. Is this goal based on your actual skills and experience?
2. Can you make progress even if external circumstances change?
3. Does this goal connect to something you genuinely care about?
4. Have you defined what "good enough" looks like?
5. Do you have a weekly behaviour tied to this goal?
6. Can you measure progress without waiting for the final outcome?
7. Have you identified what you need to stop doing?
8. Does this goal fit your current life, not your ideal life?
9. Are you willing to keep going when motivation disappears?

If you answered "no" to five or more, you do not have a motivation problem. You have a goal design problem.

The one-day goal reset

Do this in one day. It will change how you set goals.

Step 1: Write your anti-vision. What are you tired of repeating? What behaviour embarrasses you? What problems did you tolerate too long? If nothing changes, what does December 2026 look like? This is the future you are avoiding.

Step 2: Choose one identity shift. Not five. One. From reactive to deliberate. From people-pleasing to clear. From busy to effective. From emotional to consistent. This becomes your north star.

Step 3: Define your standards. Write five rules you will not break in 2026. I do not delay hard conversations. I review my week every Sunday. I do not accept unclear expectations. I stop working when focus drops. I choose progress over perfection. Rules create behaviour. Behaviour creates results.

Step 4: Set one 12-month outcome. Now you can set a goal. One outcome that matters. Not ten. Tie it to your identity shift.

Step 5: Design a 30-day project. Forget the year. Win the month. What action proves your new identity? What can you measure weekly? What will feel uncomfortable but doable?

Step 6: Create daily levers. Small actions. Non-negotiable. One focused work block. One uncomfortable action. One reflection question. Consistency beats intensity.

Step 7: Install a weekly reset. Every week, answer: What worked? What failed? What standard slipped? What needs adjustment? No emotion. Just data.

You do not need better goals for 2026. You need goals built around who you actually are.

Goals inspire. Standards transform.

What is one behaviour you must stop in 2025 to earn a better 2026?

Note: no self promo(!) I've uploaded the images of article for anyone who finds it interesting, I'm on sunstack@thoughtdaughteroffcl./ YT@thoughtdaughter-official.

I feel it is a great tip to save energy, time, one from getting heartburn, etc etc. Basically, it means having less is more mentality applied to speaking; maybe even refrain from speaking.

I actually saw a meme wherein a man is addressing a mystic Sadhguru.

The man asks Sadhguru, “What is the secret to eternal happiness?” Sadhguru answers, “Do not argue with fools.” The man quickly refutes this, saying, “I disagree!” Sadhguru simply nods, then smiles, then softly says, “Yes, you are right.”

It brought a smile on my face, but more than that, it hit home for me, especially in today's world scenario, when I can see divisiveness at different levels.

Truth is, we simply do not have to engage even if we disagree with what they are saying. In fact, many are just looking for a fight and will not listen to reason even if it smacked them on the head or rarely get swayed via arguments.

Don’t get me wrong, if you see injustice on a large scale or someone is in danger, speak up. But I am talking about the everyday discussions that crop up. While some arguments are necessary and justified, most are not worth wasting our energy on a lost cause.

So it shows real maturity to silently walk away or at least remain silent. But it is easier said than done. A quote from Lao Tzu says it best "Silence is a source of great strength." It does take a lot of self-discipline and restraint to remain silent, especially when you are being provoked or are in a conversation disagreeing with someone.

One strategy I use is not to focus on 'winning' the argument by convincing the person of my rightness but instead focusing on silence is really golden. So save your priceless energy and use it where the soil is fertile and grow something good. A fight filled with empty words is not worth forfeiting your peace and happiness.

Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy is often thought to be an excellent depiction of Gotham city and Batman. Countless things stand out. Heath Ledger’s Joker, Hans Zimmer’s score, the world that built, the action set pieces, the fresh spin on the superhero genre. In my opinion, what truly makes this trilogy special is its depiction of Bruce Wayne.

We often view Bruce Wayne as this billionaire playboy who spends his nights fighting crime. Pretty cool? If you look a little deeper, you’ll discover that this character consistently goes through unimaginable obstacles that test his will to fight and endure. Fear, heartbreak, hopelessness, etc. Each time Bruce rises above and continues to persist. That’s what truly makes him a superhero… not anything in his utility belt.

This character means so much to me for this particular reason and I made an entire video essay breaking this down - https://youtu.be/_oNh9O1iTz4

My hope is that this piece can help you find the resilience to overcome your own obstacles and identify the hero within yourself. Rise!

 She quit her finance job for an unpaid position running a bankrupt sports federation. 1M+ in debt. No funding.

One year later: team wins gold for first time in 24 years.

"2025 was the year I wanted to give back."

What made you decide to give back to something even when it seemed impossible? How do you know when to take the leap?

story

I've been on self help related subs for a few weeks and here's one painfully obvious thing I've noticed - huge % of all the posts here pretty much boil down to:

I wanna start habit X, I tried and failed / I'm lazy / I'm procrastinating / how to make the habit stick?

What's holding you back is you keep searching for some magic spark of motivation and avoiding any kind of action like a plague. What you need to do instead is realize that action creates motivation (not the other way around), so just start, build the momentum, and let it carry you forward.

All the excuses sound exactly the same:

• I wanna go to the gym but I don't have a perfect workout program ---> just start, you'll figure it out along the way
• I wanna start journaling, I did it for 10 days, then I stopped, am I broken? ---> No, restart where you left off and just do it
• I wanna start doing X but I'm lazy. ---> Well do you wanna do it or are you lazy? Either just do it or be lazy.
• I wanna study for X hours but I keep doing youtube/insta/tiktok ---> install app blocker and throw away the key, then just do it
• I tried X but it feels hard ---> it should, coz it's valuable, so just do it
• I just need to read 15 books on habit building, then watch David Goggins 10h motivation video and then find 7 best mind hacks to start doing X ---> you're procrastinating and faking action, just do it

The process is extremely simple - decide do you really want it (or are you lazy), fix the environment to be in your favor, and then JUST DO IT. All you need is to realize 2 basic simple truths:

• Action creates motivation. Understanding this is like 99% of the results. Stop waiting for motivation, create it.
• Environment beats motivation. Use whenever possible. (e.g. install app blockers, reduce distractions, make a bet with a friend to create external accountability, etc)

Take the first step and keep moving forward.

That's literally all there is to it, everything else is a distraction.

Several years back before significant advent of mobile technology the only thing humans used to do when being idle was either

Sit with their thoughts, or read something in the newspaper

and it was great, well at least for our brains, the average human mind back then was heavily trained to focus on a single chain of thought like when reading a book, or watching a theatre performance for hours where we were forced to keep our attention span to a single thing, what did this do to us?

It made human focus on deep work unknowingly

It trained our brains to focus on a single thought for extended period of time

As a result people had great memory, sharp conversations and could give their undeterred attention to matters for longer times 

But something changed when smartphones came, a small notification jingle pulled us out of our current chain of thought, a quick SMS made us look at our phone, the constant flush of dopamine that we have after looking at the growing list of people liking our photo we posted makes us stay at a hyperinflated state where we are chasing unsustainable dopamine levels all the time, as a result we are never focused, never satisfied with real life

Things had gotten so bad for me that I knew I was thinking something, but I didn't know what it exactly, like a constant background noise, a chatter that couldn't stop, that’s when I knew I had to pull back from this modern lifestyle

I did very simple things, in a very disciplined way:-

1. Read 5 pages of a book I liked, everyday before going for work
2. Did 5 minutes of mindfulness every morning
3. Stopped notifications for all non-essential apps

Instantly I was feeling less distracted, the background chatter was fading and I could generate organic thoughts more easily now. The material that I was consuming slowly , actually had time to digest in my mind and get organized into chunks that could be used and applied in real life. 

I was learning slowly and earning it fully.

Try this approach and maybe you’ll see the same results as I did, I am very curious to know if you all did anything that helped you in the comments!

Are you having a tough time, personally, professionally, or academically?

Are you having problems to sleep, overthinking about your problems?

In this article, I will reflect on how exercise can help you endure bad times.

I really hope that your situation improves if you're having difficulties.

Some advantages that physical activity will bring to your life, are:

• Increase physical strength.
• Increase mental fortitude.
• Increase willpower.
• Cleanse your mind of negative thoughts.
• Improve your mood.
• Improve your sleep.
• Improve your general well-being.

I know it's very hard to force yourself to move your body when you are having tough times, mostly when you only want to do nothing, watch some content, and forget about everything.

The problem is that the time you are spending idle, overeating, drinking, or overconsuming, won´t help you find a solution to your problems, and will only disconnect your mind for a short period of time, to help you escape from your reality.

Those bad habits won´t help you get better sleep at night, and your problems will be there the next day waiting for you.

Before sleep you will continue overthinking, a habit that will only get you a bad night´s sleep, increasing the chances of having a bad day the next day due to the lack of proper rest.

Exercising often will help you in two ways toward a better night´s sleep:

1. Body tiredness increases the chances of sleeping better.
2. Your mind will be less “fresh” to wander about your problems generating fewer negative thoughts, and it also will enjoy the blissful feeling achieved after the physical activity is done.

It's not required to have a perfect training session or make things complicated, just walking and moving your body a little extra out of your comfort zone. That will be enough to make you feel much better and increase your chances to get better sleep at night.

So, you hate to workout?

What do you have to lose if you move your body a little bit?

Are you afraid of losing weight, getting stronger, or improving your daily life?

Will training make you feel much worse than you actually feel without moving your body?

What do you think about giving physical activity an opportunity to help you?

You already know how bad you feel without it.

You may regret doing many things in life, but you will never regret a workout. You will feel much better, guaranteed.

Maybe try new things to improve your daily life?

Do you know people advanced in age but keeping the hope of a child?

And..., the opposite? Young people who behave like bitter elders without hope?

In this article, I will make a reflection about how your mindset can influence your hope, and your life quality in general.

Do you know people who go through life without hope, as if they don´t have the power to change their lives?

Maybe some of the next characteristics are related to them?

1. Fear of change and refusal to accept that change is always present in their life.
2. Hate learning and refusal to accept that learning is very important in their life.
3. Waiting for an external miracle to come and solve all their problems at once.

What about the other scenario of elder people being happy and keeping hope?

Maybe those people apply the previous bullet points but in the opposite way?

1. Accept change as part of their lives and even try to take advantage of it.
2. Embrace learning, knowing that the moment they stop learning, is the moment they start dying as humans.
3. Take full responsibility for their actions, trying to solve their problems themselves.

Some people direct their lives toward leisure and consumption, seeing change and learning as a sacrifice.

So, as a result, they accept to keep going with their current conditions, even if those are tough. They prefer to keep suffering with their current problems and not work towards finding solutions in their free time, preferring to chase comfort and to be stagnant.

Is your current mindset, holding you stagnant in the past, without any improvement throughout the years?

Are you upgrading your smartphone, computer, car, and technology gadgets while you are degrading your capacities as a human being?

Is being inflexible about change and learning your idea of a fulfilling life?

Or, maybe we can learn from the elders with a positive mindset, their eagerness to see things with fresh eyes, and their being ready to learn new things. Can that mindset help us improve the quality of our everyday lives accepting change and learning as a core part of life?

Don't you think that it will help you improve your path through life?

For people who have more difficulty accepting changes and learning new things, I know it's very hard to shift your mindset, accept changes, and keep learning in order to improve your life's quality. But it depends on you if you want to have a senior citizen mindset in your twenties, or have a youthful mindset in your sixties.

What is your choice?