Stop Hacking Your Life
Quit Your Self-Improvement Projects
Hack
verb: to cut or sever with repeated irregular or unskillful blows
verb: to write computer programs for enjoyment
noun: working for hire especially with mediocre professional standards
Life Hack
noun: a usually simple and clever tip or technique for accomplishing some familiar task more easily and efficiently
Everyone wants to live a happier, healthier life…right? And so we dedicate ourselves to re-making ourselves. A quick search on Medium for “Life Hacking” brought up articles about:
- Tony Robbins
- Succeeding Quickly
- Speeding up Life
- Being More Productive
- Morning Rituals
- Something called L-Theanine
But a thoroughly hacked life ends up being little more than an accumulation of minute, even contradictory little tips. It may end up being faster, but it doesn’t go anywhere meaningful.
Even in the world of programming, where the term “hack” was popularized, a good coder does not build a program out of little hacks. Coding is an art, with its own manuals, standards, and best practices. Good code needs to be easy for others to understand, easy to change, and easy to replace. This all takes time, money, and skill. The old maxim still applies: “fast, cheap, and perfect; you only get two of the three.”
The rise of mindfulness is a helpful antidote to life hacking culture. In a frictionless world we are discovering the value of slowing down: meditation, rituals, gratitude. A slow life.
But even this pushes us deeper. Who are we grateful to? What is our purpose? Is it just self-actualization? Moving up Maslow’s pyramid toward some mythical cap?
Sometimes being productive is a problem. We take on too much and forget the importance of doing nothing. We abandon the luxury of boredom.
Doing less means we leave empty space in our life. Busyness breeds self-importance. Practiced indolence nurtures humility.
We, Not Me
Instead of measuring our lives based on our own achievements, we should think corporately. The weakest, slowest, and poorest member of our group. should be our measuring stick for how things are going.
How can we make life better for the people around us? Think of the barista who makes us coffee, the children we raise, the people we email.
A life of self-forgetfulness is a life of freedom. An end to the neurotic navel-gazing our culture encourages. Spouses, friends, and family who are in reciprocal giving relationships find their hearts refreshed and their lives full of the things that truly matter.
I find the power for this from my faith. Christianity provides the security of an all-powerful, all-good, all-knowing God who has my best interests at heart. It provides strong familial support through the church. And it provides the tools and strength for working through conflicts when they arise.
It’s not too late. Quit hacking your life. Start giving yourself away.
