Per usual, this week is flying by! Only 1 more full week before school starts so we’re focused on getting prepped and ready for the school year.
In the midst of all this “life” of course, I’m working on my Pickleball program (Pickleball Evangelism) as well as a proposal for my book, “Dink Positive Thoughts,” as well as fitting in as much Pickleball as I can while also taking care of the family.
One area I’ve also been working on specifically, as I’ve mentioned before, is adjusting my “Identity” that is, how I see myself being in this world, from a woman who not only works out and eats well but a woman who is an athlete.
And becoming that person, my future self, if you will, is taking some effort and thought work.
At 5:30 this morning as I was driving to my Pickleball lesson, I was listening to a really cool podcast, with a neuroscientist and a psychology professor and they were talking about why we are so darn mean to our future selves. Here’s a link if you’re interested.
The fascinating thing is that almost all of us do this because of how we see our future self.
I won’t get into all they discussed, but the one thing that stuck out is that basically, when I make a decision that harms my future self (deciding to eat a 1/2 carton of ice cream for example, or at least that’s what I’ve heard some people might choose…ahem) we’re making that decision because the part of our brain working right then, sees our future self as a stranger, and when we see people as strangers, we have less empathy and we care less about them and we are less likely to make a decision in their favor.
Ouch!
Thankfully they gave a few examples of ways we can be kinder and make better decisions for our future self.
1. Make it more personal by changing the pronouns we use for our future self – ie., from “Christy” or “she” to “me’ and “I” which will help us bring it to a more personal level and to a better part of our brain resulting in a better decision.
2. If you find yourself saying yes to things in the future because you’re so busy right now, but then when you get to the future and you’re mad at yourself for saying yes because you’re just as busy then as you are now…instead of saying yes in the first place, go ahead and accept that although you might be uncomfortable and awkward declining now, you’ll be so much happier in the future, when you are free from that undesired commitment.
3. Be more willing to acknowledge and notice the feelings that arise now, rather than push them off until later. And be ok to actually sit with and process the feelings now, then let them pass, even though it’s a bit tougher now.
Creating a future self that is who you want to be is not for the faint of heart!
(For me at least) it takes a lot of work and attention.
But she is worth it. My future self is cheering me on, and yours is cheering you on as well.
Let me know what you think of the podcast. Do you struggle with making the best decisions possible for your future self? What works best for helping you make good choices? Leave a comment and let me know.
Cheering you on my friend!
c