Personalities that bring the friction into relationships can be exhausting. High standards, lack of empathy, indirect or direct hostility are traits that generally trend towards creating misunderstandings or heated situations. Frictionless personalities are rare…as is using “friction” to describe them!

The reality is that friction is everywhere. In addition to your social circles, it’s there when you put your foot on your car’s brake or when your toothbrush cleans your teeth. We benefit from a certain amount of friction, but we also benefit when we can reduce it (e.g., not having to replace your brake pads so often.) 

With consideration of your health goals, the notion of friction is important to understand. There’s always resistance between your goals and achievements. Hopefully, the past 12 months of notes have helped you understand how to mentally adapt and mindfully channel forces of resistance.   

Your brain is wired to conserve energy, therefore it’s normal to create literal and metaphorical environments for lazy-brain responses. Doing so is actually helpful. Although friction within those environments benefit matters of change. More on that over the next 12 months.

To prep, you can rate the following statements on a 1 (never) to 10 (always) scale. 

1. I generally ensure my food environment supports my goals. 

2. My sleep environment helps me get a great night of rest. 

3. I prioritize what’s important to me, including setting boundaries on my time, energy, and attention.

4. I keep my home and work spaces relatively organized. 

5. I intentionally create environments to support my goals and minimize tension or stress.

6. I manage my stress or emotions without relying on others or particular substances to cope.