We all carry these inherited patterns—ideas and knowledge passed down through generations (memes). Some of these are productive memes that help us grow, while others are unproductive memes that keep us feeling stuck, drained and prevent our growth. I’ve noticed a few unproductive ones in myself, and I’m working on some strategies to move past them.
- Living in ‘Waterfall Mode’. There’s a mindset I call ‘waterfall mode’—the idea that life should unfold in a predictable, step-by-step way. This passed-down expectation can make us hold back, waiting for everything to line up perfectly before taking action. I often have to remind myself that I can practice a concurrent engineering approach in my own life, working on multiple projects simultaneously and making progress on each little by little. Self-strategizing and planning practices are especially helpful when you have a goal of balancing multiple projects, some of which may not yield immediate results.
- Turning Focus Outward. Then there’s the habit of constant introspection. While self-reflection has its value, too much of it keeps our focus locked inside. Instead of finding answers in endless introspection, I’m learning to shift my focus outward—toward actions that create positive change in the world around me. Often, this brings more clarity than digging endlessly within myself. That’s why I don’t fully support modern psychology; I simply don’t believe that all answers are found within us. I’ve discovered that addressing broader issues outside of my personal sphere often helps resolve most internal issues.
After some struggles and research, I found a way to think about these memes that help me personally. I look at it as if we need to reprogram ourselves whenever an unproductive meme starts running. Our minds are like software code, so it’s important to reset ourselves, just as a developer would debug or adjust code if certain settings have shifted. There’s a script running in the background, and under specific environmental triggers, these memes activate and start running. My job is to identify which meme has loaded, focus my attention on it, and try to reprogram it. I haven’t fully conquered these memes, but I’ve started to recognize when and which ones try to take over, and I have some tips to prevent them from doing so. I hope you found this helpful as well!