Inertia

A body at rest stays at rest unless acted upon by an outside force, or can it be an inside force?

Photo by NEOM on Unsplash

The Problem

It can be so hard to make a change sometimes.  Even taking one step in the right direction can often feel downright insurmountable.

It can be clear that the change would be for the better, yet we give ourselves a reason–or a few reasons–why we can delay a little longer or maybe shouldn’t do anything at all.   For big decisions, it’s often the fear of the unknown or that little voice in the back of your head saying “are you sure you want to do this” or “what if something goes wrong”.  

You see this all the time for all kinds of people in all kinds of situations.  Someone hates their job, but takes a year or two or more to pull the trigger and go somewhere else.  Someone else stays in a relationship that aged like milk long ago.  Dreams deferred.  There always seems to be a reason not to act.  

This is not to suggest that it’s just a matter of willpower.  It’s something much deeper, more fundamental to the human condition.  Something that we all share and yet can feel slightly different in any given situation.  We all show up differently carrying a variety of lessons from our pasts, and yet at our core, we’re all driven by similar wants, needs, and fears.

And this inertia happens with little things, too.  The right course may be obvious and it would only take modest effort on paper, and yet we hesitate or procrastinate.  The classic example of I’ll-start-tomorrow is exercise or a better diet.  

If you sit at a computer for a living, you may be familiar with that nagging thought that it would be nice to take a quick walk around the block or the office instead of remaining anchored to your chair.  Your watch is chirping that it’s time to stand and perfect weather beckons you to come outside.  And yet, you sit there, checking Reddit or TikTok for the tenth time that hour.

It Can Get Better

Yet, inertia can be a good thing, too, if you can get the ball rolling.  Yes, the first time you try to do that walk-run, it’s probably going to be. . . not fun.  If you make it ten minutes without your life flashing before your eyes, you did good, and the first time you eat a salad without cheese, bacon, and ranch dressing, the experience might feel a little lacking.  

But if you keep with it, you can get to a point where you wonder how you ever did without.  It will actually hurt more not to go for that walk or run than to do it.  Meals you once ate on the regular feel heavy or put you under a sleeping spell afterwards.  

Many apps encourage you to maintain a streak.  I don’t love being manipulated by tech companies–more on this in a future article, I’m sure–because I know they want you to keep using their product.  But with a streak comes momentum, or a different kind of inertia.  I don’t want to let my gratitude app down by forgetting to log something I’m thankful for today!  There is a lot to be said about developing momentum or a rhythm. It can be used for good and not evil.  

How do we get this positive momentum? There are many books nowadays about habit formation.  The one I’ve heard mentioned the most is Atomic Habits by James Clear.  Ok, Ok, I actually haven’t read it, but I’ve listened to a ~10 minute summary, which I know isn’t the same thing as reading the damn book; but I will get there eventually.  It’s on my To-Read list along with 194 other books (no exaggeration and not including full series). 

The point is: A lot of minds have been working on how to form better habits, which can lead to the kind of inertia we want.  My understanding is that the biggest things to keep in mind are make it easy, doable, and that it starts with baby steps.  This is another subject worthy of an article or two unto itself. 

In This Case

It took about two months for the seed of this newsletter/blog/whatever-it-is to be planted and germinate.  That’s lightning speed compared to other endeavors in my life.  But really, I’ve thought about writing like this for years.  The first time I seriously considered it came when I had a solo law practice and wanted to build some lawyer cred–that was about eight years ago, at least.  So yeah, ignore that two-month timeline.  

What finally put this venture over the top?  It’s hard to say: A lot of time, soul-searching, hand-wringing, a nudge or two from others, midlife existentialism, and a sense of exasperation or just-pull-the-trigger-and-push-yourself-Nick.  I suppose it’s a confluence of factors, the balance of which is hard to attribute.

When you don’t have to do something–no deadlines, no obvious consequences if you don’t act–it’s easy to let things slide or linger.  I suppose at some point, you either take the leap, forget about it, or admit to yourself that it ain’t happening.  The latter two options aren’t necessarily bad either.  Not all ideas are good ideas or right for the moment.  Even good ideas come and go, or might make more sense at different times of our lives.  Figuring which ideas are good right now is what makes all of this hard.

So, what’s the takeaway here?  I don’t have the prescription for how to beat inertia or harness its power for positive change–it’s probably in a book about habits I haven’t read.  I suppose this is more commiseration for anyone who has felt the weight, and a reminder to have some self-compassion.  Many? Most? All? of us feel this way at some point in our lives whether we call it “inertia” or something else.  If there is a person out there who hasn’t felt it, I’d like to meet them.

Anyway, if you do feel it, chin up.  Onwards and upwards.  Hang in there.