Your surroundings are more important than your motivation

How the forms of the continents and the successes of farmers are connected

In his book Guns, Germs and Steel, evolutionary biologist Jared Diamond points out the obvious fact that continents have different shapes. It turns out that this has significantly influenced the history of mankind.

The length of the American and African continents from north to south is much greater than from east to west. And in Eurasia, on the contrary, the length is greater from east to west.

It turns out that the first farmers of Eurasia had at their disposal a territory with long plots of land along one latitude. It is easier to develop such a piece of land due to the similar climatic conditions. Having domesticated several crops, farmers grew them fairly easily from one end of the mainland to the other.

Farmers in America and Africa faced an ever-changing climate: compare at least Canada and Florida. Depending on the climatic zone, new plants had to be domesticated. Therefore, agriculture developed here 2-3 times slower than in Europe and Asia.

Over the centuries, the differences became more significant: in countries where there was a lot of food, the population grew faster. Thanks to this, strong armies appeared, new technologies were developed. Differences that seemed small have grown over the centuries into global ones.

There is no evidence that farmers in Eurasia were more talented and motivated than farmers in the rest of the world. But they were able to develop agriculture 2-3 times faster.

How to create a conducive environment for yourself

Even if you are the most talented and hardworking farmer in the world, you cannot grow a watermelon in permafrost because snow is a poor substitute for land.

If you want to increase your chances of success, you need to create an environment that helps you, not hinders you.

Make good decisions automatically

Rebuild your environment so that it makes good decisions for you. For example, buying small plates will help you lose weight because the serving size will be predetermined.

Researcher Brian Wansink from Cornell University (USA) discovered Van Ittersum, Koert, and Brian Wansink (2012). that people begin to eat 22% less food by replacing plates with a diameter of 30 cm for plates with a diameter of 25 cm.

And you can defeat procrastination by blocking social networks and entertainment sites on your work computer. And there will be no need to waste willpower fighting the urge to look at VKontakte.

Incorporate good habits into your daily routine

A few years ago, the PetSmart project changed the checkout process at vending machines. After the client swiped the credit card over the reader, a screen appeared, offering to donate money to help stray animals. This simple strategy raised $ 40 million in charity in a year.

Use a similar strategy: integrate any good habits into your routine.

It will be easier for you to go to a gym on your way home from work than to one that is five minutes away, but does not line up with your route.

To play a musical instrument more often, place it in the middle of the room, let it constantly catch your eye.

Eliminate the negative influence of external factors

The Japanese TV maker has reorganized its workspace to save time by eliminating unnecessary twists and turns of workers. And you can customize your environment as well.

If you do not want to eat junk food, do not buy it, and even more so do not put it in a conspicuous place at home.

Never forget about the influence of the environment

We often blame external circumstances when things go wrong. Lost his job - the crisis is to blame, lost the match - to the judge for soap, late for the meeting - damn traffic jams.

However, when we win, we gladly take credit for ourselves. They hired me - I'm talented and handsome, won the match - we trained a lot, arrived on time for the meeting - I can organize my day.

It is important to remember that the environment encourages both good behavior and bad behavior. People who easily adhere to the right habits take advantage of their surroundings. Others, who pull out success with their teeth, have to struggle with external factors as well.

What looks like a lack of willpower is most often the result of a bad environment. And in order to guarantee yourself a victory, you need to play in favorable conditions.