Tag: self improvement

The Hardest Decision I Ever Made Was to Walk Away From the Life Everyone Expected of Me

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Daily writing prompt
What’s the hardest decision you’ve ever had to make? Why?
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People assume the hardest decisions are big and dramatic. Breakups, career pivots, college choices.
Mine did not look like any of that.
It was quiet. Almost invisible from the outside.

The hardest decision I ever made was to stop living the version of myself other people seemed to expect.

It sounds simple. Let me tell you, it was not.

1. Your Brain Fights Change More Than You Think

Identity feels personal, but the brain has a strong influence because it likes patterns, predictability, familiar routines.

When I began realizing I needed to change in a real way, not just adjust a few habits, I felt this heavy resistance. A kind of internal message that said, “Do not move.”

It took me a long time to understand that the voice urging me to stay the same wasn’t some kind of subconscious wisdom.
It was just my brain protecting what it already knew.

2. Philosophy Saw This Long Before Modern Science

Kierkegaard wrote about people living as copies rather than originals. It sounded dramatic when I first read it, but eventually I realized I was quietly doing exactly that.

Psychologists now call it having a self-authored identity.
To me, it simply felt like waking up and realizing the path I was on no longer felt like mine.

There was no big turning point.
Just small moments, such as:

  • a class that suddenly felt wrong
  • conversations on Halloween night where I felt like I was acting
  • drifting from people I still cared about but no longer matched

It did not feel brave; rather, it felt like grief.

3. The Decision Happened in a Very Ordinary Moment

There was no epiphany.
Just me, sitting at my desk late at night, staring at a blank document and realizing I could not keep pretending.

I wanted something different.
Something I could not describe yet.
Something that did not fit the script I had been following.

The choice was simple but painful.
Stay where I understood who I was, or move toward a version of myself I had not met yet.

Both options hurt, but that’s how I knew it mattered.

Eventually the resistance eased, not completely, but just enough.

4. What Leaving Actually Felt Like

Quiet, rather than triumphant or cinematic.

It felt like saying, “Alright. I guess it is time.”

I did not suddenly become confident.
I simply felt aligned in a way that surprised me.

The fear stayed, but it shifted.
It stopped blocking me and started pushing from behind, almost like momentum.

I realized I did not need to feel ready.
I only needed to move.

5. What Hard Decisions Really Are

They are not choices between good and bad.
They are choices between familiarity and authenticity.

From the outside, they look small, but on the inside, they rearrange everything.

Choosing yourself, even quietly, reshapes how you think and what you want in an internal renovation.

6. A Question for You

What part of your life is still running on expectations you never agreed to?

And what might happen if you started rewriting that script?

How Multitasking Is Rewiring Your Brain (And Not in a Good Way)

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Think multitasking makes you more productive? Think again. Here’s how switching between tasks is rewiring your brain, lowering focus, and raising stress (and how you can fix it, too).

Let’s be honest.

You probably have five tabs open right now. Maybe a podcast is playing in the background. Maybe you’re half-texting someone.

It feels like you’re getting a lot done, right? Like you’re maximizing your time.
But here’s the truth: multitasking isn’t helping you. It’s actually training your brain to lose focus, remember less, and crave constant distraction.

Let’s unpack that quickly.

The Multitasking Myth

You’re not really multitasking. You’re task-switching. Every time you jump from one thing to another, your brain has to pause and reset.

Those tiny switches might only take a second, but they add up. Research shows that constant task-switching can slash productivity by up to 40%.

It’s like trying to run a marathon while stopping to tie your shoes every ten seconds.

What It’s Doing to Your Brain

Here’s where it gets wild. Multitasking physically changes your brain.

  • Less gray matter: Brain scans show that people who multitask a lot have less gray matter in the part of the brain responsible for focus and emotional control.
  • Worse memory: You’re training your mind to chase what’s new instead of digging deep into what matters.
  • More stress: Jumping between tasks keeps your brain in “fight or flight” mode. Cortisol (your stress hormone) stays high, and that drains your energy fast.

So yes, multitasking might make you feel busy, but it’s also reshaping your brain in ways that make it harder to focus later.

How To Reboot Your Focus

Good news is, your brain can rewire itself back.

Try these simple fixes:

  1. Do one thing at a time. Close your extra tabs. Finish a task completely before moving to the next one.
  2. Batch your distractions. Set times to check texts or emails instead of reacting all day long.
  3. Practice deep work. Start with 20 minutes of uninterrupted focus. Add time as your brain adjusts.
  4. Let yourself be bored. Boredom isn’t bad. It’s where creativity and clarity show up.

The Bottom Line

Multitasking isn’t a badge of honor. It’s a brain trap.
The more you split your attention, the more your brain adapts to distraction.

If you want to think clearly, remember more, and actually finish what you start, then do one thing at a time.

Your brain will thank you later.

It’s that simple.

therealmasonlaiLeave a comment
Daily writing prompt
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
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I can start with the biggest lie I’ve ever been told.

“It’s not that simple.”

I believed it. Whenever I told my peers I wanted to start something new – do better in class, start writing poetry, pick up boxing, start learning guitar – the one phrase that always cut through was:

“It’s not that simple.”

But today, I want to tell you something different.

The best piece of advice I have ever received is this:

It’s always that simple.

I love to overcomplicate things. I bet you do, too. We create mental barriers as excuses to validate our inability to accomplish our goals. We tell ourselves that it’s complicated, our timing’s off, or we’re not ready. But in reality, they’re excuses disguised as logic. Sometimes, we even adapt to our inability to adapt, and in doing so, we stay stuck in places we don’t want to be.

But being stuck is not a failure. It’s a starting point. And you can choose where you want to go from there.

Because it really is that simple.

Yes, doing things you’re not used to is scary. Heck, it scares me, and it probably scares everyone.

The consistent discipline it takes to accomplish your greatest desires, to ascend, to have the authority to dream big – that’s difficult. But when it comes down to knowing what needs to be done, your brain will always know.

The first step, the next step, the final step – it’s all one, and it’s always within you.

You don’t need a hundred tutorials. You don’t need motivational videos on loop. You don’t need anyone to give you permission.

Everything you need is already there.

Yes, it’s going to be hard, and you’ll have to give more than you’ve ever given before.

But just remember:

It’s still that simple.

And that’s what makes it possible.