[robenkleene]

A bit off topic, but I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas about how to remember to do something like this?

In specific, I mean as it relates to information management. E.g., a lot of things are solved problems for me, like using todo apps for todos, and some sort of "Everything bucket"[0] system for searching for information (per the link, I use the file system for this).

But things like this, things you want to try and implement, but unlike a todo, you have to wait for the right moment (i.e., use this technique to address a bad habit at the right moment), I can't figure out a way to use to technology to remember to do them.

(I'm aware some people don't like to use technology to solve these kinds of problems, but for me personally, technology has been tremendously effective in solving these problems when a system can be adapted to the problem. I'm just not sure what the system should be for this type of information.)

I've actually been thinking about this problem literally for over a decade, the first app I ever made was designed to address it[1]. This app is no longer maintained, because it didn't get enough users to be worth maintaining. Maybe an app like this is the right solution, and there's just not enough people who think it's a problem worth solving to support the continued development of a software solution? I'm not sure.

[0]: https://www.al3x.net/blog/2009/01/31/the-case-against-everyt...

[1]: https://1percenter.com/review/

[batshit_beaver]

When it comes to automatic introspection (ie noticing when you're thinking/feeling something, processing that, and making a CONSCIOUS decision in response), I am not aware of a better solution than meditation. It literally trains your mind that the constant stream of information passing through your brain (thoughts and cravings included) can actually be "watched" and responded to.

If you don't have a sufficient level of awareness, it'll be really hard to catch yourself thinking "man, I don't want to do X, I'm just gonna lay on the couch." You'll just go lay on the couch and your brain will continue on to something else.

To break these kinds of patterns, you essentially need a "supervisor" process running in your brain that can catch and evaluate thoughts, especially negative or harmful ones. Then if you catch yourself thinking "I don't want to do X right now," you can proceed to thinking about that feeling rather than laying on the couch.

Takes about a month or two of daily meditation before this sort of thing really starts becoming effortless.

I miss my meditation routine...

[veidr]

Out of curiosity, why did you stop your meditation routine?

Anyway, I agree with you — meditation appears to be able to make that kind of introspection automatic, which is a real boon. That's true in my own experience over the past 3 months as a n00b[1], and seems to be the case for many/most people.

It (automatically) changes the "I don't want to do rowing" feeling into an observation like, "Oh, here's the predictable urge to not do rowing arising". It's a subtle difference, but the main point is that it feels different and separate from "I (me, myself) don't want to do X".

Obviously, "I don't want to row" isn't accurate. PREVIOUS you wanted to row, or you would not have bought the rowing machine. SUBSEQUENT you will presumably be happier and more satisfied (and a bit healthier!) if you do the rowing.

It's just the shard of you in THIS MOMENT that "doesn't want to" — and even that is likely inaccurate if you notice and examine the urge. It is probably just one of several competing thoughts/sensations arising in consciousness.

What meditation practice (pretty quickly) makes automatic is something you can also intentionally do on purpose, if you have a lot of energy and your willpower reserves are holding up: enable making the decision of whether to engage with and identify with this thought, and therefore perpetuate it into the next moment (and the next, and the next), or to just let it pass away on its own.

[1]: I started by reading the book "Ten Percent Happier", thought the science-based benefits of meditation sounded interesting, and tried a few of the apps available. I settled on Waking Up (and, accidentally, Ten Percent Happier since I forgot to cancel the trial subscription, so now I do both). I think each of these apps might suit one's personality differently, depending, but any of them will do the trick. You also don't need an app; you could just read a book, but app is an easier way to get started.

It is like weight-lifting: the gains for n00bs are easy and almost impossible not to get. You just have to do it.

You totally don't have to do it well. I "couldn't" meditate at all at first, even with guidance. I couldn't tell anything different was happening, compared to me just sitting there. It took maybe twenty ten-minute sessions before I was like, "oh, I think I just meditated for a couple seconds". As I progressed, I realized my previous self-assessments weren't accurate, but after two months of daily meditation (just 10-15 minutes a day!) I noticed not only that I could now do it (part of this was learning that finding yourself lost in thought, and letting the thoughts dissipate and just refocusing on the breath or whatever the object of meditation is), but also that I was getting IRL benefits from it later, during daily life when not meditating.