Are you looking for a way to upgrade your life? This article is your invitation to quit something, completely.
Here’s a (perhaps) controversial take: It’s easier to quit something completely than it is to limit it from your life.
When you try to use your own self-control to limit a certain activity, food, or whatever in your life, it actually takes a lot of mental energy. You will frequently be in a mental battle of Should I? or Shouldn’t I?
But when you decide that you’re 100% done with something, it’s like a weight being lifted.
You don’t have to make the decision over and over again. You’re done with it!
Aren’t there some things that it would just be nice to never have to deal with again?
Now, there are some things that you just don’t want to quit completely, and that’s okay! Even things that aren’t great for you, like eating sugar or scrolling on your phone, you may feel some resistance when you think about quitting them completely, 100%, for the rest of your life.
Once again, that’s okay. Most things in life are meant to be used in moderation.
There are a few things, however, that you might enjoy just happily cutting out of your life for good.
If you want a quick, easy way to upgrade your life, quit something that you don’t like.
Why do we do things we don’t enjoy doing?
There are a lot of things in life we have to do that we won’t find particularly enjoyable (that’s just life).
And then there are things that we do that we don’t find particularly enjoyable… but we don’t have to do them.
I’m not talking about anything extreme like quitting your traditional job or giving up society and living in the mountains.
I’m talking about the everyday habits we gradually acquire that don’t actually serve us.
Maybe you’ve developed a habit of scrolling on your phone when you’re waiting in line, even though you don’t like doing it.
Or you find yourself watching the reels of a certain influencer, even though it doesn’t add value to your life and you feel like it’s a waste of time.
These little things are things that you CAN quit.
What can I quit to upgrade my life?
See if anything comes to mind as you read these examples. (By the way, these are purely to get your brain thinking; no judgment if any of these are things that you love to consume!)
- A fast-food restaurant that you go to because it’s on your way home from work, but you don’t actually feel great after you eat there.
- Large sizes of orders at a restaurant, where it’s more food than you actually need and you feel overly stuffed when you get it.
- A certain website that you habitually check because it’s entertaining, but it leaves you feeling annoyed.
- Types of clothes or brands that are cheap and/or in style, but they aren’t flattering on you and you don’t feel comfortable in them.
- Hanging out with people that make you feel negative and icky.
Did anything come to mind? Something that you do or eat or consume… but it always makes you feel blech?
By the way, you can choose something that’s 100%-quitting-but-only-at-a-certain-time. Just be very clear about what your parameters are.
For instance, maybe you don’t want to give up soda for good, but you want to give up having soda with lunch. From now on, you don’t have to make any decisions regarding whether you’ll drink soda or not at lunch: you know you won’t do it.
Things I’ve quit completely:
- Facebook’s newsfeed
- Chocolate milk at lunch (that was back in 7th grade, lol)
- YouTube shorts
- Celebrity gossip pages on Reddit
- Many different TV shows
- Many different junk food items
Alright, your turn!
Is there a certain TV show that you watch but don’t even like that much?
Is there a place you shop out of habit but you don’t like it?
Think of one thing that doesn’t make you feel good and then make the decision to just… not do that. (The beautiful part is, it shouldn’t be too difficult to follow through with because, well, you don’t even like the thing!)
By the way, I recommend not choosing something super broad at first, like “I’m going to completely quit getting angry at my kids” or “I’m going to completely quit wasting time.”
Instead, think more along the lines of, “I’m going to completely quit nagging my kids for leaving their coats on the floor,” or “I’m going to completely quit playing Candy Crush.”
This exercise is meant to help you level yourself up, but it shouldn’t be so difficult that you start hating yourself for being imperfect.
How can I completely quit something?
1. Identify the thing you want to quit.
Just choose one thing for now. Remember, choose something that you don’t actually enjoy, or maybe you enjoy it in the moment but you always, always regret it.
2. Internalize why you don’t like the thing and why you want to quit it.
This can be as simple as sincerely realizing that you don’t like it and mulling that over in your brain for a few seconds. Or you can spend five minutes journaling about how the thing/food/activity makes you feel and why you’d be better off quitting it.
3. Set up roadblocks, if necessary.
Sometimes making the decision is all that we need.
But if you’re likely to be tempted by the thing you want to quit, set up roadblocks so that you don’t fall back into the habit.
If you want to quit TikTok, delete it from your phone.
If you want to quit eating those microwavable mini pizzas, stop buying them and buy something else instead.
4. Enjoy your life upgrade and continue to do awesome things.
Rinse and repeat.
Conclusion
If you have a certain habit or activity that has come to mind as you read this article, just pull off the Band-Aid and quit it already.
Remember, it’s easier to quit something completely rather than try to limit it with your own self-control, because when the choice comes, you don’t have to spend any time rationalizing or weighing the pros and cons. You just won’t do it.
So, what thing are you going to quit?
Best of luck!
