Jumpstart Your Dream Life

Why Uncertainty is Killing Your Future

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Do you know what’s worse than knowing something bad will happen?

Not knowing whether something bad will happen. The state of being stuck in limbo, uncertain about an outcome, is the worst state to be in. We would rather know with absolute certainty that something bad will happen than maybe have it happen.

In 2016, researchers performed a study on the stress levels of participants about to receive a painful electric shock. In situations where subjects had a 50 percent chance of receiving a shock, they experienced much higher stress than subjects who had a 0 or 100 percent chance of shock. That means participants who knew they would definitely get a shock felt calmer than participants who only had a 50 percent chance of shock.

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10 Signs You’re Overthinking Things

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There’s an epidemic sweeping across the population.

It isn’t from a pathogen floating in the air, or a substance lying on a table surface. It’s right in our heads.

We’re faced with levels of uncertainty that many of us have never had to deal with. We’re faced with concerns about whether things will remain stable. And then there’s the inability to make future plans, which leaves people with lots of spare time.

Lots of time to think. Lots of time to worry. Lots of time to overthink.

Overthinking has always been prevalent. A study showed that 73 percent of 25 to 35 year olds overthink, while 52 percent of 45 to 55 year olds overthink. A large part of the population is doing a lot of thinking.

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What to Do When Every Day Feels the Same (Especially During a Pandemic)

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Do you ever feel like you’re living your own version of Groundhog Day?

You’re repeating the same day over and over again. Nothing is unexpected, nothing can be changed. You wake up, do the same thing, go to bed, repeat.

Any sense of spontaneity you might have experienced before has been sucked out, leaving only muted shades of black, white, and grey. You look ahead, and everything looks the same. You look back, and it’s all a blur.

It’s a common feeling during normal times. You’ve been doing the same thing for awhile. Maybe you’re working in a job, running a project, and going through your routine.

You’ve lost motivation, you’re just not that excited anymore, and things are getting stale. It’s normal, no matter what you do.

But during a pandemic? Multiply that feeling by a hundred.

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How to Rewire Your Brain to Perform Difficult Tasks

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Why do some people accomplish so much, while others do hardly anything at all?

How is one person able to exercise, hold meetings, and finish numerous tasks before lunch, while someone else hasn’t gotten out of bed yet? How does someone work on their craft, day after day for years, while someone else can only daydream about getting started?

We all know what we should be doing. We should be learning. We should be staying healthy. We should be working on things that will pay dividends in the future.

But we don’t. You see, those things aren’t easy. In fact, they can be incredibly hard.

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Overthinking is Damaging Your Well-Being

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Imagine that it’s close to bedtime.

You’ve finished a long day of work, ate dinner, and watched TV. You get into bed and relax by doing some reading.

After a while, you realize it’s getting late and decide to call it a night. You reach over and turn off the light. It’s pitch dark now.

You know you should be falling asleep. And yet there you are, staring at the ceiling. Your mind is racing with all sorts of thoughts.

You think back to something you said and wonder if things came out wrong. You reflect on a past action that resulted in negative consequences. Then, you start to worry about all the things that could possibly go wrong.

With each passing thought, you feel yourself sinking into a low mood.

If this sounds like you, you may be suffering from overthinking.

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5 Types of Music That Will Increase Your Happiness, According to Science

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Music is the final touch to a setting.

Take any situation, put in music, and the ambience gets taken to another level. You notice this all the time in films. Music is used as a signal of impending danger, hope, or blissful tranquility.

Music alone can evoke powerful emotions. The reaction upon hearing a tune is almost instant. You might think back to a memorable time in your life or imagine a picturesque scenario.

It comes as little surprise that we turn to music as a quick way to boost our spirits. But what is it about upbeat music that makes us feel better? Do our minds and bodies change as a result from hearing certain songs?

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5 Ways You Can Increase Your Intelligence, According to Science

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We often assume intelligence is fixed from birth.

If you’re born with it, you have it. And if you aren’t? That’s too bad. End of story.

Previously, neuroscientists believed that our brains were “fixed”. No matter what someone did, there was nothing they could do to change their brains. If anything, our brain functions would become worse over time.

However, more recent research shows otherwise.

But before we get to that, let’s answer the question: what is intelligence?

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Sunk Cost Fallacy: Why We Keep Throwing Good Money After Bad

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We are incredibly picky about where we spend our time and money.

When someone wants to meet, we evaluate the usefulness of the meeting before agreeing to their request. If a store sells items that aren’t of interest to us, we leave and take our money elsewhere. We naturally veer towards activities that give us the highest returns.

Every day, we make mental calculations on what we’re doing, what we’re getting out of it, and alternative options out there. Then, we make incremental adjustments to optimize our lives.

In short, we are smart when it comes to deciding how to use our finite resources.

So why is it that once we’ve started something and realized it’s a bad opportunity – knowing full well that it’s draining our time, money, and energy – do we find it hard to stop?

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Bad Things Happen When You Ignore Warning Signs

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In January 2002, a lone man predicted a natural disaster that would impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

Local expert Dieudonne Wafulah had been studying Mount Nyiragongo, a volcano in Congo, for 15 years without pay. He tracked the activity of Nyiragongo and another nearby, smaller volcano for signs of change. Although his equipment had been stolen and vandalized over the years, he persisted in his work.

Then, he saw it. Based on the patterns Wafulah witnessed, Mount Nyiragongo was about to blow. There had been a series of tremors in the earth some months before. Black smoke rose from the mountain. The lava pool inside the crater had shifted and was getting higher.

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8 Ways You’re Making Life Harder Than It Has to Be

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Do you crave the challenge?

When you see a problem waiting to be solved, you can feel your energy levels rise. Blood surges through your veins. Your mouth salivates. Like a hound tugging at a leash, you want nothing more than to lunge forward and tackle the issue into the ground.

Except the problem isn’t so easy to solve. After awhile, it stops being fun and starts turning into work. You wonder what you’ve gotten yourself into.

Sometimes, we don’t want to find the easy answer to a problem. We want to toil and struggle to feel like we’ve earned something. Otherwise, we don’t treasure the result.

While this helps us push through difficulties, the problem arises when you use this attitude towards everything. Some challenges are not worth the effort. Others can be achieved more quickly.

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