Be a 2%er

Clearly I’m leaning hard into the book The Comfort Crisis (by Michael Easter). I find that it’s not only helpful for me, but it’s feels tremendously important to read for anyone working with the emerging adult population. We are truly dealing with a generation of young people who cannot handle discomfort, yet we live in a world where discomfort is inevitable on a daily basis. So how do prep ourselves to not have a complete meltdown and feel like a failure at life? Well, we choose to do things that build us up to handle that discomfort. That’s where the “2%” comes in.

According to Easter, 2% of people take the stairs when there is an escalator. A “2% mindset” is being willing to do what is uncomfortable in the short term knowing it is better for you in the long term. Basically, embrace short term discomfort for long-term benefits. A simple example of this (although from this same book) is leaning into being bored. Parents really struggle with allowing their child to be bored. In fact, I’m dealing with a generation of parents who are constantly filling their child’s schedule. It’s painful to witness. If the parents allowed space for their child to be bored in bits and spirts, but over time let it extend, then the long-term gain is that in the future if they find themselves bored they self-initiate to change that. If not given the space to tolerate and explore boredom, then being bored is languishing without any movement in sight. It’s just as painful to watch for those of us on the outside as it is to feel for the young adult themselves.

What’s the less? Take the stairs (if you can). And if you can’t and you find yourself or your young adult really swirling the drain in life, consider calling a Therapeutic Consultant to help figure it all out.

For questions or comments contact Joanna. ‍ ‍