The war between procrastination and productivity is a bloody one. We are constantly torn between doing what is good for us in the long term (our obligations, responsibilities, work we’ve said we would do), and what is willing to offer us instant gratification, giving us that quick dopamine fix. Picture this: You’ve just had a long, but successful day at work. You have gone to the gym and gotten that gnarly pump and have even done the dishes from last night! Wow look at you! Now there is one decision of the hundards you make a day: shall I do my homework or read my textbook like a good noodle? Or shall I watch the Office for the 14th time because I’m awesome and deserve it.
All too often the second option of this, or a similar scenario wins. There is a very small overlap between things you generally enjoy doing and will return the time investment you made in some form or fashion.
We know what it’s like to have these things, these hobbies, or interests. It’s the feeling of getting out of a rough day of middle school, but looking very much forward to soccer practice in the afternoon. It’s the feeling of actually wanting to get up on Saturday morning in order to get an early start on a book or game you love. These are the things that bring joy into our lives, and they can be different for everyone.
Once upon a time as a child, you have attracted things that interested you such as bugs or coloring, without any care for the judgment of others. In this stage of our lives, it was easy to pique our own interest because frankly, we knew very little about the world around us (and it is quite complicated). Unfortunately, as we grow older we find ourselves seeking to participate in things because of some misplaced group identity. This is a recipe for disaster because we will not be happy with ourselves unless we put our full heart into it, which no one (especially yourself) expects you to do if you don’t really want to do that thing. The things that we can put our full heart in will allow us to express ourselves in new ways and lead us to insight about ourselves and the world around us!
So now that we are older and have become full of distrust in the society we willingly participate in; how do we find things to do which we can call “Good”? Well, it’s as simple (and deceivingly so) as choosing a major. Find something you like to do, this is good, build on it. Within reason of course, if you like it, and it benefits you, your family and by extension your community; you should chase after it. While this seems somewhat abstract, I don’t mean for it to be. A few nights ago I was listening to music, this gave me joy, so I took some time to go down a few Spotify rabbit holes, and now I have a few new artists I like. Mono/Poly is an electronic