Have you ever been through this?
It starts with determination. A new book, a gym membership, a program.
Days or weeks later, the motivation fades. The habit disappears — or is replaced by another that brings that feeling of ⟨1>this is really it.⟨/1>
And then it passes. And the cycle starts over.
I don’t know how many self-help books you’ve read. In my case, it’s been several — and I openly confess that few were the ones I finished.
The usual conclusion is that something is wrong. That we are dysfunctional. That others succeed and we don’t.
But that’s not it.
The problem is not us
What I discovered — in myself and the people I work with — is that the problem is rarely lack of will.
It’s the model.
We live in a linear time model. Inherited from the industrial revolution. First A, then B, then C. If you jump to C without passing through B, the machine breaks down.
This model works on an assembly line, but in human life, it works less well.
The model that existed before
Before industrialization, the dominant model was circular.
In agriculture, fishing, carpentry — everything followed the cycles of nature. There was no end point, there was a rhythm. Each season prepared the next. Every end was also a beginning.
Notice how a child approaches a book or an activity — rarely in a linear way, but rather freely, curiously, without pressure to get somewhere.
Circularity allows restarting. Not as failure — but as what reflects the natural cycles.
The cycles are also inside us
Each start of day is like spring — potential, creativity, beginning.
Midday is like summer — expansion, production, visibility.
Late afternoon is like autumn — harvesting, reflection, slowing down.
Night is like winter — rest, silence, regeneration.
And the question rarely asked before starting a new habit is simple: ⟨1>what season am I in now?⟨/1>
If the body asks for autumn — receptivity, rest, listening — and we start a habit that requires spring — expansion, energy, beginning — the effort will always be greater than necessary.
Not because we are weak. Because we are rowing against the tide of our own cycle.
⟨1>Good practices⟨/1>
⟨1>Lourenço de Azevedo⟨/1>