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Sometimes I hear voices in my head. Usually, it's my own voice, saying something like "I told you so". We all have these moments. We'd be going about our normal, everyday life, when suddenly, in a moment of clarity, we see the future. And what we see doesn't look good, and with it that annoying feeling that we could avoid that future if we do something about it NOW. Then we snap out of it and get back to whatever we were doing before, silencing the futurist within. Then the year ends and we look back and say: I saw that one coming, but didn't do anything about it. Why?
If you read the above entry on prospect theory, you'll know the answer. If you didn't, you should know that in day-to-day life we are more concerned about the prospect of losing something than gaining something of equal value. How can you escape from this act of irrationality?
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"How can you capture those moments of clarity that, if acted upon, could bring you a better future? Write a letter to yourself." |
This may sound like a simplistic way of approaching a complex problem. But think about it this way: Who's the one person you pay the most attention to? That's right, it's yourself.If I tell you to change the way you behave you'll brush my advice aside. But if you realize something yourself, if it's your insight we're talking about, then action becomes far more probable. So what should the letter look like? It all depends on your own moment of clarity. Perhaps you've just realized that you'll be made redundant next year but haven't actively started looking for a new job. Perhaps you want to take a year off to get an advanced degree but haven't started saving for it or researching the degrees available.
Whatever it is that you're not doing, sit down and write a short letter to yourself. In the letter, describe the things you are seeking in the most vivid way possible. List examples of how your life would be different. But then write a paragraph or two about the implications of not doing anything. Describe what the future will be like in, say, six or twelve months. Again, the more color you can add to it, the better ("you'll be kicking yourself for not signing up to those dance lessons when you go to that wedding party in June. Standing at the corner, you will feel humiliated as all the others are frolicking on the dance floor...". You get the picture.).
Schedule to read the letter a month later. If you've acted on the things you wrote about then the letter served its purpose. But if you haven't it'll be a poignant reminder to the negative effect that doing nothing can have on your life. |
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