Are you locked in yet?
What even is locking in? Well, according to the college students that I am surrounded by every single day, locking in is when you say you’re going to put away distractions and do your work … but are you really?
It has reached the first month of school and I feel less locked in than ever. I’ve abandoned the strategic plan I set for myself, I’ve neglected my water drinking goals and guys … that gym is not seeing me. Why is it so much easier to return back to our old habits instead of actually locking in?
Well, according to the National Institute of Health, our brains “lack the architecture” to multi-task and focus on more than one topic at a time. When we set a long list of goals for ourselves, we only overwhelm our brain. Every single little flaw that we try to iron out in our 75 day plan to “become the best version of ourselves” is trying to rewrite our brain in a way that it is just not capable of.
The next reason for our lack of ability to lock in is our daily intake of dopamine. Dopamine affects our focus, and when we are always interacting with high dopamine platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, we constantly have the lingering sensation in the back of our mind to check our phone. It truly is an addiction that forces your attention elsewhere and decreases your ability to lock in.
Finally, motivation. The feeling of motivation comes and goes, and while you might feel motivated when you create that detailed outline planning every single thing you are going to change about yourself at one in the morning. The reality is that when you actually have to do that plan you won’t feel motivated anymore. Having a long list of to-dos feels way more intimidating than a simple goal for the day. Which would you be more likely to accomplish anyways?
Now, I don’t want you to think that locking in is impossible; it’s not! Just focus on one goal at a time. We’ve all heard the phrase “1% better everyday” so why not apply that as your new routine instead of a life altering 75 days. Making small changes is more sustainable and easier to accomplish than changing the fundamentals of who you are. I mean, it took me 19 years of bad habits to become the person I am today, so I won’t be able to change all that in just a few months.
Social media has really forced us to think that we need to always be the best version of ourselves, but why? Comparison will always make you look and feel like you need to do more, but it’s taking into perspective that there are so many traits you have that others wish they had too. We are all at different stages in our journey and there is no deadline to reaching a specific milestone. So, why not take it slow? I mean, it worked out for the tortoise.
Don’t let the social media trends trick you into thinking you need to change everything about yourself right this minute. It’s just unrealistic. Focus on becoming 1% better every single day!
So, are you ready to lock in?