Avoid repetition

OK, so the title is a sardonic take on a prompt that recycles two others in the past month! However, there is something in that approach to daily life if you really think about it. It is boredom and each day being just like the one before and the one after that kills quality of life. What happens when this is the case and what can you do about it?

Well, life goes, or appears to go much more quickly. There are a number of reasons for that, but one of the main reasons is that you do the same thing on each day, each week, each month and each year. When that happens days blend into each other. Childhood goes much more slowly as each day contains new experiences. This is why Christmas appears to come round faster every year. If that seems to be the case you need to get off the treadmill and start running on the open road, metaphorically speaking. How do you do that?

Well, for me, it’s the avoidance of daily habits where possible. Don’t do the same thing at the same time every day. Now, obviously there are routines such as school and work that have set routines. Having worked in education I have been in that routine for a good 50 years of my life so I can speak with expertise on both sides! However, I tried to take on different tasks, try new lessons, develop new skills and, even in the last year of year round teaching, take an interest in new ideas and new technologies such as AI. My last year has seemed to move more slowly as a result.

Take up different hobbies or learn something new. I took up German 130 days ago and it has been a struggle at times, but I have learnt something new every day. Happy Colour gives me a new picture every day. Some are straightforward, some are much more tricky, but every day contains something new to do. Those two apps tend to be ones I go to when I have time so it’s not a case of doing the same thing at the same time every day. People who have complex morning routines stretching for hours are speeding their life up and, I would suggest, not really gaining much in return.

Now don’t get me wrong, I know that routine is necessary in certain areas of your life, but it mustn’t become routine. You should always try to find a different way to follow that routine. If you do, your life will be more varied, more interesting and it will seem to go more slowly. Avoiding repetition may not be easy but we should try it.