We follow patterns.
We follow schedules.
We follow routines.
It is strange that we go through our lives never taking a minute to look up and stop. You will see everyone following the way their life is "supposed" to go. Everyday people eat lunch at the same time. If you are like me, you have the same morning routine before you start your day. I drink a cup of coffee, even if I'm not tired. I look in the mirror. Why? I don't know. Students sit in the same desk every single day even though there is no official seating arrangement. People will follow sidewalks without even thinking that cutting across the grass would be a faster way to their destination.
To give credit where it is due, I started thinking about this topic when talking with a friend at the library. I told him that I always go there after my class on Thursdays and he pointed out my habit. From there, I asked one of my friends if she felt her life was ruled by habits. She said, " I do somethings for no reason. They are a waste of time, but I do them because its habit. Specifically, my morning schedule. I drink water before I get up even though there is no purpose." Some of our daily rituals could be explained a little more scientifically, like the time we go to bed and the time we wake, which is partially due to our circadian rhythms. Even our body follows a schedule!
I would also think about this in terms of fashion trends. Today, the poofy 80's hair and legwarmers seem ridiculous. The pictures of my friends and I with feathers in our hair (which was beyond cool in middle school) now seems laughable. We follow trends so easily...maybe that is why "trendsetters" are far and few.
If we are creatures of habit, why is "change" so enticing? Eight years ago there was a presidential campaign slogan boasting of change, and it seemed people loved that idea! But read what I said again. People loved that idea. Maybe that is part of the problem. We are infatuated with the idea of change. We love believing change will happen overnight. Now I'm not talking about politics, but if you genuinely want change in your life, in your attitude, in your career... you have to put in the effort to make progress everyday. It is hard; we are creatures of habit. It took billions of years for humans to evolve and that was a partial product of our changing environment. It didn't happen overnight, and an outside force had to help us. To use a harsher example, think about all the relationship issues that are resolved on people changing in order for it to work. It's easy to say that , but how many of those people follow through with that promise? I understand that we can't decide when to "evolve" and I am no relationship guru, but my point is, we are stuck in the quicksand of our routines. We have the power to change, but we rarely choose to unless we have to. I'm comfortable where I'm at, and it's easier this way. We are happiest in our patterns, and that's okay. Change is easier said than done! Take time to make sure your habits and patterns are the good kind. It was Aristotle who said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
