Habits, rituals, whatever you want to call it
Adam Olszeski
Issue date: 4/29/09 Section: Opinions
The human being is a creature of habits. And no matter what, it is hard for us to break out of that simple routine of the everyday. We are creatures of repetition; governed by the simple formulas that fill our day to day. Wake up, go to practice, breakfast, then class, take a nap, get some lunch, go to class, go to class, go to practice, get food, hang out, get food, do homework, go to sleep and do it all again. I do that every day. I can not stray from this because it is my habit and my schedule, and that is the way my life goes.
I discovered this today when I planned on skipping my mid-morning/afternoon nap to write this very article. I sat down at my computer and began too.... surf the internet. I sat there just wasting my time instead of doing my article. I tried opening Word. I typed a few sentences, deleted half of them, and.... went back to surfing the Web. After another 10-15 wasted minutes I was like forget this I am taking my nap. As I was falling asleep I came up with a brilliant idea. I wouldn't set an alarm and wake up and write my article then, skipping my second class of the day, but alas it did not happen. I woke up 6 minutes before class and laid there trying to convince myself not to go. I failed there as well. I pulled myself out of bed and made it to class 3-5 minutes late just like I do everyday. No matter how I tried I could not break out of my daily routine.
I looked into and it seems that I am not the only one in the world that has this trouble. Leading researchers have discovered that human beings become accustomed to doing things in a certain order and rarely stray from their daily patterns. People will go so far as to sit in the same spot on the train and at meal times, and park in the same spot daily. People get so entranced into a certain routine that straying from may even cause mild anxiety for some.
I find it amazing that we as a species fall into such orderly lives that we can't even break out of a simple routine. No matter how I tried I couldn't write this article until right this instance because this is always the time I set aside to write for the paper. I had always thought that I was a free spirit, do as I will kind of guy, and for the most part I still think I am, I have no qualms about spontaneous trips or last minute decisions to go to the movies, but only during my free time. My day is the way it is because that is the optimal layout for me. And no matter how much I have to do and how little time I have to do it in, it is almost impossible for me to stray from that schedule.
I discovered this today when I planned on skipping my mid-morning/afternoon nap to write this very article. I sat down at my computer and began too.... surf the internet. I sat there just wasting my time instead of doing my article. I tried opening Word. I typed a few sentences, deleted half of them, and.... went back to surfing the Web. After another 10-15 wasted minutes I was like forget this I am taking my nap. As I was falling asleep I came up with a brilliant idea. I wouldn't set an alarm and wake up and write my article then, skipping my second class of the day, but alas it did not happen. I woke up 6 minutes before class and laid there trying to convince myself not to go. I failed there as well. I pulled myself out of bed and made it to class 3-5 minutes late just like I do everyday. No matter how I tried I could not break out of my daily routine.
I looked into and it seems that I am not the only one in the world that has this trouble. Leading researchers have discovered that human beings become accustomed to doing things in a certain order and rarely stray from their daily patterns. People will go so far as to sit in the same spot on the train and at meal times, and park in the same spot daily. People get so entranced into a certain routine that straying from may even cause mild anxiety for some.
I find it amazing that we as a species fall into such orderly lives that we can't even break out of a simple routine. No matter how I tried I couldn't write this article until right this instance because this is always the time I set aside to write for the paper. I had always thought that I was a free spirit, do as I will kind of guy, and for the most part I still think I am, I have no qualms about spontaneous trips or last minute decisions to go to the movies, but only during my free time. My day is the way it is because that is the optimal layout for me. And no matter how much I have to do and how little time I have to do it in, it is almost impossible for me to stray from that schedule.
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