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Hi friend,

Thank you for opening my letter.

It means a lot to me.

We all get stuck in ruts. It's part of life and inevitable.

But what is a rut?

As humans, we need order and predictability. Order and predictability create a sense of safety.

To feel safe, children need routines and predictable patterns. They need a secure base from where to explore the world. This base shows them that the world around them is not dangerous and that if there's any danger, they can return to safety.

This is good. This is how we are wired.

Even as adults, we thrive when we feel safe. When we feel safe, our parasympathetic nervous system is activated. When that's activated, we can access curiosity, sociability, openness, and creativity.

When we sense danger, our flight or fight response system is activated, and focus and energy switch to surviving.

But a rut springs from routine, and when we repeat a predictable pattern. It's as if your brain gets stuck in a pattern-seeking mode.

We need exposure to novelty and friction to stay creative, open, and sane.

You need to explore new things to get out of a rut. That's how easy it is.

We all have different risk-averse levels. Some people need high levels of risk to feel alive. If you're like me, you enjoy your safe base but have a desire to explore new avenues.

I'm not the one to tell you that you should dive with your head first and put all your eggs in one basket.

I'm the one who will tell you that you need to discover your own limits. I'm the one to tell you that as a human, you need a safe base while you explore novelty.

There's no growth without friction. Novelty is a human need.

See this as a scale of balance.

On the one hand, you need safety, and on the other hand, you need novelty.

To get out of the rut, or the brain's pattern-seeking mode, you need about 15 minutes of unfocused time per day.

​Daydream, take a meandering walk, take a new route to work. In essence, expose yourself to new things daily to activate a different part of your brain. Oh, and meditate:).

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In a word: Go out to the woods and daydream today!

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With great love,

Gabe

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The Rewire Summit registration is closing soon. We are filling the spots quickly and planning a summit 2.0 after the Summer.

If you want to ensure you get a spot, please visit www.rewiresummit.ca.

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Be well!

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