Your Mind Loves Routine

We all know that a plan followed for a decade can change our lives dramatically for the better. It works for health, wealth and mental wellbeing alike. But long-term plans are easy to make and hard to keep. We are hilariously bad at sticking with anything for long, even when it would bring us good fortune. Literally. It's not a flaw of character. It's psychology. We are not built to think that far ahead. We can only plan for the near term: the next day, the next week, the next month at most. Beyond that, every plan is open to revision. We cannot plan for a future we cannot see. It is a limitation we inherited from our ancestors, courtesy of evolution. Yet some people keep routines for years, even decades. We all know a family member who has held to a particular diet, a particular ritual, a particular set of habits for years, and who is certain they will never give it up. Ordinary people manage it too. They work out every day, meditate every day, write every day, or work on a project…

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