SOS — How To Avoid Repeating The Same Mistakes Over And Over Again
You and I have at least one thing in common.
We have problems, a lot of problems. It’s something that simply cannot be avoided walking this earth as a human being. But the quality of our lives can be still very different.
Why is that?
I believe it has to do with the quality of problems in our lives. If you can have better problems than me, your life quality will be probably better than mine. But how do you improve the quality of your problems?
One of the best ways is to eliminate recurring problems.
We humans have a tendency to keep repeating the same mistakes over and over again. But if you can fast forward past these repeating lessons of life, you will be awarded with a better, more meaningful set of problems (no, you won’t ever have a life without problems).
How do you do this?
One time fix is not enough for humans
Computers provide a great reference point.
Generally speaking, computers operate with an “if this, then that” logic. You give them instructions with code to perform a set of steps to achieve an outcome. If the outcome is incorrect, the reason is that there is a bug in the code. So, how do you fix it?
You change the code.
With computers, this is a straightforward, one-time fix. However, we humans are creatures of emotion and need to be reminded more than we need to be taught. To change human behavior, we need to repeatedly run the “fixed code” until it becomes a habit.
This fixed code can found closer than you think.
The one who has solutions to all of your recurring problems
Let me ask you a few questions.
Who knows the most about your life? Who can you trust 100% of the time? Who can give you brutally honest advice? Who knows all the little details about how you’ve managed to solve problems in the past?
You. Just think about all the problems you’ve faced during in your life.
If you zoom out far enough most of these problems don’t exist anymore, right? The fact is you already know how to overcome most of the repeating problems, but you just might not remember the lessons when you need it the most. Especially if you’re in a low energy state. But guess what you always have energy for?
To pick up your phone and press a button.
Build a quickly accessible SOS resource
We carry our phones with us 24/7 these days.
That makes it the perfect tool for quickly accessing a collection of best advice on the planet, by you, for you. I call this the SOS resource. It’s meant to be first aid for common problems you face in your life, and it’s guaranteed to work because you’ve created it yourself.
There’s multiple ways you could set this up.
Personally, I’ve placed a red SOS button to my most used Notion page and whenever I feel the need for help, I simply click the button which takes me directly to my SOS resource.
Here’s how my template looks like.
So, whenever you manage to solve a problem that might repeat in future…
- Try to think what advice could you give to your future self?
- Document how you solved the problem this time and how could you avoid it future?
Remember to do this when you’re not hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. You want the advice from the higher version of yourself, not the worst version.
Be a Robot
The only thing left is to use the fixed code.
You need to follow your own advice, no matter how you feel. Be a robot. When you run in to trouble, quickly glance through you library of battle tested solutions and remind yourself of the mental frame you need to take. Then just do it.
Many times it’s only a tiny shift in your mindset that makes all the difference.
