Dealing with hardships
One good reason to do hard things is that by doing them, they begin to feel easier — not because
they are actually easier, but because by doing them, we become more adapted to and more
adept at conquering them. Choosing to do what’s difficult makes us stronger to face difficult
things.
I talk to myself about whatever event I faced before, reminding myself that though the present
situation feels hard, I am equipped to handle it. I bring specific examples to mind. Whenever
possible, I focus on the end positive result I expect and the short-term nature of whatever pain
I’m presently facing.
When we feel like this, our brains want to save mental energy by directing our focus to the most
readily available, recallable information to help us make decisions quickly. We often do this by
going with our gut and making our best guess.
This is called expediency bias: doing the thing that feels right, or rushing to
judgement, without properly considering all the variables. The brain does this
because it’s much easier to process existing ideas than new ones, a principle in
psychology called fluency. It’s the reason why if you speak Spanish, it’s much easier to
learn Italian than Japanese
One good reason to do hard things is that by doing them, they begin to feel easier — not because
they are actually easier, but because by doing them, we become more adapted to and more
adept at conquering them. Choosing to do what’s difficult makes us stronger to face difficult
things.
I talk to myself about whatever event I faced before, reminding myself that though the present
situation feels hard, I am equipped to handle it. I bring specific examples to mind. Whenever
possible, I focus on the end positive result I expect and the short-term nature of whatever pain
I’m presently facing.
When we feel like this, our brains want to save mental energy by directing our focus to the most
readily available, recallable information to help us make decisions quickly. We often do this by
going with our gut and making our best guess.
This is called expediency bias: doing the thing that feels right, or rushing to
judgement, without properly considering all the variables. The brain does this
because it’s much easier to process existing ideas than new ones, a principle in
psychology called fluency. It’s the reason why if you speak Spanish, it’s much easier to
learn Italian than Japanese
