Our immediate environment influences us more than we think.
You might have noticed, when hungry, we take the first thing we find in our kitchen.
And depending on whether we find a fruit or a pack of nachos, determines what we may end up eating.
It may not seem like much, what is 200 extra calories for a day right? But this effect adds over time, and can make us go from being fit to becoming unhealthy.
This is true in the context of all activities, on entering our rooms, do we first see the TV or the books? That may influence how we spend our leisure time.
Which apps occupy our phones? Are they filled with social media and the news applications, which gives us an information overload? or are they filled with the minimal essentials?
There are various studies done where the test subjects make healthier choices when they have healthy options in their environment.
I have reduced the use of social media (which was a huge requirement) once I removed some of the apps, and use them mostly on PC (PCs are comparatively less accessible).
The influence of the environment is at a subconscious level, which is why its a little tricky and not always obvious.
Our will power is not strong enough (unless you have intentionally practiced it). We need to make changes to our environment to remove the strong stimulus that might influence us.
Some of the small and effective changes we all can make:
- Have posters/post it note to remind us of the activity we had kept pending.
- Reducing the applications on the phone to have more essentials and remove the clutter.
- Have fruits/ healthy snacks as the first things you would see on the kitchen counter.
- Have some good books ready to be read.
- Have the gym bag ready the night before.
- Have a limited supply (or remove completely) of alcohol or fast food if you tend to over-indulge.
- Remove some social media apps if their usage becomes overwhelming (maybe use only some, and not all the apps).
- Clean the house and sort some of the mess.
- Don’t bring phones/tech when having meetings with friends or colleagues, as it devalues the human connection. (Its easier said than done, but something important to keep in mind.)
These environmental cues affect us more than we can imagine, and we can get a control over the narrative by making deliberate changes.
We can consciously influence our sub-conscious to help us grow.
This concept of influence of the environment goes beyond our personal space to family cultures and corporate cultures.
Simon Sinek in his various talks have talked about this in detail about how leaders of an organization should have an environment of growth and positive culture which will lead to better performance at jobs by the new recruits. He says that you do not hire passionate people, you have a culture that promotes growth and helps overcome shortcomings and mistakes to make the employees love their jobs and in turn become passionate.
Takeaways
Making small changes in our environment over time, assists us and helps remind us of our growth and the tasks that can help us reach our potential.
Ujjawal Sureka
A Student of life.
PS: If this post resonated with you, let me know in the comments, also share if you think it will be useful to others. Thank you, and have a great day.
All the images in this post are a courtesy of Pexels.com
The Growth Story 
Ujjawal this is a very helpful and user-friendly post! All the extraneous media and constant distractions can become time wasters if we let them! Take care. Cheryl
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Thank you Cheryl 😊
Its true that all that extra stimulus can become distractions in life.
Have a good day Cheryl, stay safe 🙌
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Extremely useful post. This is filled with great information. Thank you for sharing. Take care.
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Thank you sir. I appreciate the feedback 🙂
Have a good day and take care 🙌
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Absolutely with you on this Sureka. Awareness and conscious practice definitely helps keep distractions and junk at bay. These small steps inculcated help a lot in the long run for a quality life!
Have a great day ❣️
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Thanks a lot Radhika 😊
Yes, you are right conscious practice is helpful in a long run. I appreciate your thoughts on this!
Have a great day 🙌
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I like the idea of making small changes. That’s really where it starts. You can’t always start big. Change is usually a gradual process. Good post as always!
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Thats true, its not always feasible to start big. Thanks a lot man, much appreciated 🙌
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You’re welcome!
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Very informative post! It’s good to make some small changes in our life, as it might help us at some point or another
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Thank you, yes you are right, small changes work good during extended periods of times.
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Your post resonated so strongly. It’s a realistic approach to reducing those things we have let creep into our time and space.
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Thank you Sean! 😊
Yeah, that was the view I was trying to bring, to be conscious and to enable our environment to help us instead of taking time away from us.
I am glad that it resonated with you. Have a good day Sean!
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This is extremely true! This is what I started to do a couple of months back and things have been so much better. For people who think social media is an absolute necessary and use Android, it also helps to remove the apps from the home screen and then one would be forced to search for it… Which is another hurdle to find it… And it’s extremely useful as well
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Yeah Kushal, I too have found these techniques to be useful. And the tip you suggested is also quite beneficial for anyone who wants to supplement their self control. I too add hurdles to the things I wanna reduce, I think thats a good strategy. Thanks for sharing your experience, have a good day! 🙌
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I’ve read a few articles similar to this one. Surrounding ourselves with good choices ready to be made will help our minds see them as the right choices to make!
Thank you for sharing. 😊
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Hey Hamish. Yes, you are right, I too have heard this in many talks and this sure is helpful. Thank you for your views. I Appreciate it, have a good day! 🙌
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You too, my friend. 🤙
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Good advice. Removing external distractions helps to achieve goals and promotes personal growth/self-discovery.
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Thank you David, I think so too, and am experiencing it to be true more than ever. I appreciate your words on this. Have a good day! 🙌
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Reblogged this on Intellect | Adventure | Nobility.
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Much Appreciated 🙂
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This resonated with me!
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It is amazing that you found the post relatable! 😊
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A good post! Thank you…
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