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Why Is It so Hard to Achieve Your Goals?
A brief introduction to the evolutionary mismatch theory.
Do you have a hard time sticking with your intentions?
If so, you’re not alone.
It’s a problem that people have been struggling with throughout history.
In fact, philosophers all the way back to Ancient Greece have found this tendency puzzling(1).
If we know which actions are best for us, why do we routinely act in other ways?
It’s a good question.
And today, thanks to insights from evolutionary biology, we have a much better understanding of the answer.
Evolutionary Mismatches
The human species has evolved for millions of years.
During almost all that time, our ancestors were hunters and gatherers.
It wasn’t until about 10,000 years ago that we transitioned to a mainly agricultural lifestyle.
And since then, our lives have changed dramatically.
Today, only about 0,001 percent of the world population lives a hunter-gatherer lifestyle.
The vast majority of us instead live in societies where technology is changing our everyday life at an…
