“If you do not actively choose a better way, then society, culture, and the general inertia of life will push you into a worse way. The default is distraction, not improvement.” —James Clear, author of Atomic Habits

As a single pebble begins to roll down a hill, it gains speed so long as the slope continues to descend. Any loose nearby pebbles, stones, or topsoil this first rolling pebble comes into contact with has a strong likelihood of beginning to roll downward along with it, pulled by the nudge, and then gravity does the rest. And if the descent is long enough, not only will quite a bit of speed, but quite a bit of debris be moving down the hill.

Now, if I want that pebble and the soil moved, that momentum is incredibly helpful because I don’t have to do much work – it becomes a default, pushed forward by gravity. But if the relocation is a result of erosion, for example, then this is counterproductive and potentially even detrimental change.

An interesting thing happens when we’ve been moving at a pace or living a certain way for an extended period of time, even if we come to discover that it isn’t conducive to our well-being, it becomes difficult to live differently. We’re talking about more than habits, and delving deeper into mindset.

Here is where the skill of awareness becomes our greatest tool to put to work.

Let me share with you an example from my own life.

Back in September, I shared that I was reconfiguring my workweek. And I have largely stuck to it. However, two interesting observations have been made. As I take my days off on Tuesday and Wednesday and work through the traditional weekend, my mindset has had to make intentional adjustments. This has taken time. There is a dichotomy at work because on Tuesday and Wednesday, I have to remind myself that it is okay not to work, but on Saturday and Sunday, I have to resist the habit of wanting to slow down. Two different shifts, both brought about by the same decision.

It has been an intriguing experiment, but one made intentionally as I know what works best for me and what is best for the TSLL posting schedule.

What I am getting at is that if we have done something for so long, even if it hasn’t been most beneficial (or is no longer beneficial, even if it once was) to our way of life or nourishing what we value, it can still be incredibly hard to change our perception of what is best. In other words, our mindset. At the root of it all is comfort – the lizard mind likes what it knows, even if it is mediocre, existing, or surviving, even when thriving is available to be had if only we would shift our mindset and embrace a new approach.

BUT! As we have talked about many times here on TSLL, our mindset, how we see the world, can change due to neuroplasticity. The reason our mindset feels so difficult to change is the exact reason why you will be able to change it should you choose to. The more you repeatedly do something, look for something, think something, you create a ‘road’ for your synapses to travel. And the more frequently you do that ‘thing’, the more easily the synapses can travel and is more willing to do so without effort.

The most difficult time during the process of changing our mindset is the initializing of a new approach – establishing it as the new norm. This will take repeated intentional effort . . . until it doesn’t.

Back in January, the new Meditation series began here on TSLL. Posted as a mini-episode/post each Sunday through the entirety of 2026, the practice of meditation takes time to become effortless, something that will be the topic of focus in No. 9 (next week’s Un Moment de Méditation), but in time, it will become our default. And because we have chosen with intention, understanding the benefits of doing so, it is a healthy default we want to welcome into our lives. A shift in mindset is always possible; it is just that the interchange between the two – the old mindset and the new – requires us to be hyper-engaged until it becomes something we do, something we want to do because we are experiencing the benefit of doing so.

“Permit yourself to change your mind when something is no longer working for you.” – Nedra Glover Tawwab

The Role of Momentum

Momentum plays a significant role in establishing a mindset. And once we understand its role, we can put it to work in our favor.

As James Clear’s quote at the top of the post suggests, if we don’t consciously choose our life, society will choose for us, and we will just end up being pulled with the current whichever way it is going, however everyone else around us is living, or saying is the way to live. This can show up in endless ways – how we drive to work (are we rushing, frustrated when we have to stop at a light or sit in traffic, cursing as we go OR are we mindful that other humans are in those tin boxes and have lives with loved ones they care about, and a job they are heading to that pays the bills), what ‘fun’ looks like, what a weekend to look forward to is, what holidays look like, how we talk about our day, the world, those in our life and our work, how we define family, how we understand living well to be. You get the idea, this list could go on forever. My question to you is: In what ways are we living that our mindsets accepted that do not support our well-being, but find us going along to not disrupt the flow of those around us – intimately or the world in general?

“If you don’t make the time to work on creating the life you want, you’re eventually going to be forced to spend a lot of time dealing with a life you don’t want.” – Kevin Ngo

When I explain to people some of the reasons I flipped my work-week, most folks eventually see how it makes sense: Far fewer work emails come through on the weekend because businesses are closed and those workers are enjoying their weekend, which translates into far fewer interruptions (i.e., emails) while I am writing. And when it comes to my new ‘weekend days’, it is twofold — when I stay in Bend, which is most of the time, businesses are open so I can still tend to anything errand-wise I need, but often without the crowds; and when I do get away for a day or two as I did last week to the Oregon coast, accommodations are cheaper with more availabilty for options of where to stay. All of this, for my temperament, is welcomed, as I prefer quiet, as peaceful as possible places to either relax or go about my business – grocery shopping, etc.

The momentum of change begins by first, noticing what needs to change; then, where we can change something, we need to choose to do so. I acknowledge, that for 20 years I wasn’t able to flip my schedule as I have done now, but funnily enough, I could have done this as early as 2022. It still took me three+ years to acknowledge that the traditional schedule was less conducive to what I needed to both work and live well. Three years! And this is demonstrates the power of momentum, even if it isn’t helpful – it is powerful!

I doubted for quite some time that changing how my workweek looked – when it began and when it ended – was worth it. After all, I’ll just go with the flow of what my neighbors and those in Bend, and most other folks in the world are doing – starting my week on Monday, cheering when Friday arrives. But as I have shared before with readers, I LOVE my Mondays because I genuinely feel so darn fortunate to do what I do. So I didn’t feel camaraderie with those who dreaded Monday. And that was part of my nudge to design my week to what best suited the content I needed to create for TSLL and when it needed to be ready.

The momentum that harms us is the momentum that is passively accepted. So long as we choose the way we are living, then the momentum we begin to gain will benefit us.

As I am typing this post, it is Sunday morning. I have been writing Monday’s Motivational post on Sunday morning since the blog began (during a handful of years, 2014-2020, it was paused as new podcast episodes were shared on Mondays, so I would work on those on Sundays instead). My point is, I have always been working on Sundays, and since I didn’t want that to change because I find it to be a productive time for me creatively to write these posts, it dawned on me, “Shannon, why don’t you change the design of your work week?” Duh!🤦‍♀️

This all set my wheels in a new direction, and the momentum began to shift gradually. It took time, effort, and intention, but now the momentum is picking up in a direction better suited to my needs.

“You are the one that possesses the keys to your being. You carry the passport to your own happiness.” – Diane von Furstenberg

Today, take a moment to look about your life – the pace, your routines, etc. Also, take a thoughtful reflection on the times of day and days of the week that you absolutely love, as well as the days where you consistently don’t feel ‘up’ or your mind isn’t its best self, no matter what you do. On that point, here is one more example from my own life.

Why traditional weekends never got me excited

Perhaps it was because I felt so drained after a full week of teaching at school, or maybe it was simply because I thoroughly enjoy my own company and time with Mother Nature and my pups in my leisure time as opposed to other traditional forms of ‘fun’ on the weekend that my teaching colleagues would talk about on Monday morning when we would debrief our weekends. Whatever the reason, Saturday wasn’t a day I woke up to and felt entirely at ease with until I turned Saturdays into my gardening days. Now, of course, during the winter, I am unable to garden, which leads me to the opportunity that was staring me in the face.

Along with the reasons I shared earlier for flipping my schedule, turning my Saturdays into a workday relieved a lot of ‘pressure’ to be so active as many people like to be. I never gave in to that pressure once I stepped out of my 20s, realizing it didn’t suit me, and instead embraced my genuine love of a slower pace, a quiet weekend, maybe heading to an exhibit or a bookshop, something to feed my mind, then returning home for a quiet weekend of reading, creating in some way, relaxing, cooking a good meal, you get the idea. So why not turn Saturdays into a day of writing, something that I do love, and use the dormancy of the garden during late autumn and winter to put this new approach into practice before spring arrives? And so that is what I did.

Will I still be gardening on Saturdays, along with Tuesdays (my new ‘Saturday’)? It is probable, but as a reward for finishing my rewriting task for that particular day. Of course, we will see how it goes, adjusting along the way, something I will continue to do with my overall schedule, as we learn as we go with each of our routines, if we are putting into practice awareness. The key for us all is to be aware of what is working for us, not being afraid to shift the momentum as we need, and so long as we are being mindful, we will find a life rhythm that works best for us.

How the Right Momentum Shows Up

Earlier this week, Nelle and I found a new trail to explore. Having recently read a detailed map introducing this trail added by our Park District, I noted where it would take us and how long the route was, and I quickly became eager to explore it, as it looked to be a great addition to our catalog of walks in Bend.

The trail began with a fairly steep incline with only slight switchbacks, but so long as I kept walking steadily upward, not stopping along the way, the momentum wasn’t lost. Yes, it took effort, but to arrive somewhere new will initially take the most effort prior to building an ease of momentum. This is because we must first choose to head in a different direction, walk a different path, literally in this case. Then, we reached the near highest elevated point where it was primarily flat, with only subtle undulations the rest of the way. The effort expended lessened, and the enjoyment and delight increased. Indeed, it was a lovely trail, and now all we had to do was walk and take in the new sights. But first, we need to push ourselves, much like swinging at the playground – to begin the momentum of swaying back and forth with ease, we have to first really lean in and pump our legs and body weight back and forth with effort. We have to choose to change course, to try something new, knowing effort up front is needed, but so long as we’ve done the homework of ourselves, understanding what we need, what is best suited to our best nourishment, pretty quickly, a new momentum, the right momentum builds up and we get to simply enjoy the excursion and way of life we have chosen. Choose well and live a life you love. 

Wishing you a wonderful Monday. Bonne journée.

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