A Little Push to Get Back to School and Work

As the summer comes to a close, and we find ourselves going back to school and work, we may struggle to get back up to speed with our commitments.

A body at rest will stay at rest is Newton’s First Law of Physics, and it applies to human behavior, too. Psychology has the principle of behavioral inertia, suggesting that a person at rest will remain at rest, which is one of the reasons it’s difficult for people to get back to work after a pleasant weekend or a restful summer.

As a licensed clinical psychologist, I don’t like calling this "laziness," but simply part of the human condition. We all tend to follow the trajectory we have been following for a while. The good news is that psychological interventions can put the body in motion, which is more likely to stay in motion! Here are some ways to give yourself that push…

Find Your Why

• Can you clarify some of the things that you truly find meaningful?
• You are going to be on this planet for a finite period. Do you want “staying at rest” to describe your life’s purpose?
• Is relaxing what you genuinely find vital and valuable? You could quickly answer, “Yes!” It wouldn’t be fair to judge your values and aims for your existence. But I’ve worked with thousands of people, and when people consider what they want their life to be about, they rarely choose “Relaxing” as their cardinal value.
• Why do you do the things you do, or better yet: why would you be willing to start doing new things or bringing new energy to the things you’ve dedicated your life to?
• At your 80th birthday party, what do you want to reminisce about?
• When a young party-goer celebrating your 80th year with you asks, “What accomplishments and experiences are you most proud of? What motivated you to do them? Why were you energized to do those things?” Thoughtfully consider what your answers would be, and see if you can link that to doing something today in that direction.

And speaking of directions…

Find Your Way

Once you’ve authored some of your “Whys,” you can choose the “Ways” you will behave to live a valued life.

A significant push to make behavioral change is to write out specific goals and find an accountability partner to give feedback and manage positive consequences when the goal is met by a deadline.

Telling a close friend, “I’ll exercise on the elliptical trainer for 60 minutes, when the miles per hour are 6.0, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, before I go to work because I value my health and fitness” is a good way to set up a SMART goal.

A SMART goal is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant to your why, and time-bound. When you include a reward with your accountability partner, you will be more like to achieve it: “If I accomplish all three days of exercise in the manner I defined, I get to go out for a fancy coffee with you on Saturday morning.”

You can add a negative consequence such as, “If I don’t meet all the requirements, we don’t go out for coffee, but I’ll give you the amount of money we would have spent, and you will send it to the political party I don’t want to get elected next November!”

You can set many goals for yourself to overcome behavioral inertia, and finding your why–by clarifying your values–and finding your way–by setting up SMART goals and having an accountability partner–will give you that push you may need after a long resting period.