Have you heard of “Life Debt?”
I hadn’t until yesterday and it’s already changing my behavior.
Here’s how Leo Babauta described it in a blog post:
“In programming, there’s a concept called “tech debt” … basically, it’s the idea that when you take the shortcuts now, you owe some work later to make things the way they actually should be done.
Every programmer does it – no one does things exactly as they should be as they go, but instead do things the short way now and come back later to complete the job.
This is what we’re doing in our lives as well.
We’re accumulating Life Debt when we rush through the day, leaving little things unfinished, not put away, or in a mess because of our hurry.”
To put it more simply:
Things you avoid doing now create a debt your future self will have to pay.
And things you do right now are a gift to your future self.
The concept clicked with me.
And I’ve started doing more in the moment.
A few examples:
• Putting the peanut butter jar back in the cabinet instead of leaving it on the counter
• Answering an email in the moment instead of waiting to do it later
• Making a tough decision today instead of postponing it
Little things like these add up.
Am I living a completely debt-free life?
Of course not.
But I’m doing enough to put a smile on my future self’s face.
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