You’ve probably fallen into cycles in your life. Cycles of boredom, productivity, and addiction. Often times, you feel on top of the world and crash soon afterwards, only to build yourself up.
In Quarantine 2020, I’ve done the same. I was determined to make the best of the situation in March, trying to work out, read, and write every day. I deleted all social media apps from my devices, and dove wholeheartedly into self-improvement. I felt like I wasn’t feeling any different, so after two weeks of hardcore productivity, I burned out and crashed.
Spending the next week lazily doing the minimal work to get by, I wasted away playing games and consuming enteratainment. Then, I was shocked by the sudden realization that my final exams were quickly approaching, and this cycle repeated itself.
The Cycles of Life
In this article, the three main cycles that I want to highlight are the productivity cycle, the progress cycle, and the grandest of them all, the status cycle.
The productivity cycle is the cycle that dictates your productivity. You’ve probably overestimated the amount of progress you’d get done in a given time frame, thinking that you could work at maximum efficiency at all times. Then, a month later, you assess and see that you didn't get as much done as you wanted.
The progress cycle is the cycle of regression that occurs whenever you set a lofty goal for yourself. You will meet the first sign of resistance and get discouraged, sometimes even abandoning the goal and going back to your old habits. This cycle is why there are so few success stories and why many people can’t get in shape.
The status cycle is the cumulation of every generation. This cycle occurs many generations in a row, as children often follow in the footsteps of their parents. It’s hard to break free from this, since opportunities often hinge on the environment that you’re in.
Breaking the Cycles
The cycles of life, although very strong, are not unbreakable. Eventually, you will be able to break them by moderation. Aristotle preached the “golden mean” where you don’t do anything too strenuously or too quickly, because it will actually harm you more than it benefits you.
By diving headfirst into something, you run the risk of overcompensation and burnout. In doing so, you’ll end up in a worse or similar position as you started in.
