The subtle trap of living the same scripted life every day is not talked about enough. In recent times, the level of busyness we see around us has far exceeded what we used to know years back. Granted, times have become harder compared to years past. Most people are now juggling two or three jobs at the same time just to make ends meet. But somewhere along the line, all that energy is not seen. What becomes visible instead is low productivity and a tired mind.
The craziest thing is perception. From the outside, one might appear to be doing well. People see you leave your house before 7am and return around 9pm, and they automatically assume that since you’re always busy, you must have everything figured out in life. But that is not always true. Being busy doesn’t automatically translate to progress or fulfillment.
Earlier this month, I came across a tweet that related so much to this reality. It said:
“If you want to see how stagnant your environment can be, go back to where you grew up ten years ago, and you’re most likely going to see the same grocery stores, hair salons, and businesses.”
That tweet hit me because I decided to try that experiment in the neighbourhood where I grew up, and it wasn’t wrong.I saw people still operating the same small kiosks I have always known them for. The same hair stylists and barbers were still there, working in the same unaesthetic shops they’ve always had. No visible change. No growth. Just time passing, quietly, while everything stayed the same.
Stagnation is dangerous because, in the long run, one might look back and realise they spent their entire life waking up every day only to remain in the same spot. It’s like running on a treadmill. You invest so much time and energy, yet you’re not actually getting anywhere. Maybe we’ve become so accustomed to equating stress and busyness with growth that anything less feels abnormal. A calm or slower life begins to feel unproductive.
But living a stressful life doesn’t always mean you’re productive. You can spend your entire life in survival mode without even realising it. Slowly, frustration creeps in over time, and that’s when people begin to question themselves. They start asking where they got it all wrong. Because they’re working hard and staying busy like everyone else, yet there’s nothing tangible to show for it.
This is where clarity matters. Having clear goals and things you want to achieve within a specific period of time gives you direction. It helps you track progress. You no longer work just because you’re awake or because it’s what you’ve always done every day.
That’s why reflection is important. From time to time, we need to pause and look at our lives to see whether we’re simply running routines or actually living intentionally. Reflection helps us understand whether the things we do daily are helping us grow or quietly keeping us stuck in the same place.
Many people have reached peak mental exhaustion from constantly working themselves into the ground while still feeling empty. When that exhaustion sets in, people either switch to mechanical mode or become discouraged altogether. The goal was never to work round the clock so others can see how hardworking we are. The goal is to live intentionally, work smarter, and avoid patterns that leave us feeling stagnant, so we can build the life we truly desire.
