The infinite circle of making the same mistakes

In the same way that we pass down our knowledge and wisdom to new generations, we can also easily pass down mistakes and bad habits, some of which are long-lasting and difficult to break. One of the habits I notice in society today is insulting. How come insults have been a form of expression for so long? When you think about it, there isn’t really much value we get out of it if not for spontaneous gratification. Flipping someone off, injuring their beauty or weight, etc.—these are all habits that don’t produce anything of value, yet they have been passed down for generations.

This is just a simple example; there are more complex bad habits that are passed down from generation to generation and persist in our society despite providing no value to us but actually being counterproductive. You have things like an unhealthy lifestyle, inherited hatred, a poor diet, and bad character. This will be a way too long write-up if I were to cover each of these, but let's just focus on inherited hatred. Most, if not every, war currently going on in the world right now was started decades ago by people who are now gone, and yet the hatred they bared for each other persists.

You can imagine hating your neighbor and raising your children to do the same and continue the infinite cycle of doing just that. New generations come and go, and yet the problem persists; it has become like a tradition now to be passed down. People who don’t know each other are groomed to hate each other because of people who are now gone who knew each other. This is just one of those examples of mistakes we carry on.

Break the cycle

A child is like a sponge, which absorbs everything from his parents, the good and the bad. Often times, we are just going to grow up like our parents, think like them, and act like them, as well as take on all their bad habits but the ones they inherited and the new ones they developed. Those beliefs are so strong because they have an emotional link; for example, if your dad taught you something wrong, you will feel like perpetuating it simply because it reminds you of him in a certain way. The knowledge we get from our parents is also foundational and roots us in reality; changing those foundations is far from an easy thing to do, believe me.

In my opinion, the only way through this cycle of making the same mistake is by having an “open mind” and being disposed to change. Some parents believe they can teach their children the right way and avoid teaching them bad habits, but they forget to realize that even without speaking, you are teaching your kids. They learn your habits from a keen observation of everything you do, and obviously these bad habits are going to pop up from time to time.

Teaching the wrong thing

Just the way you respond to a person, whether it's your spouse, neighbor, or whoever, when your kid observes you, they learn that, so if you are nice they learn that, but if you are rude, they learn that too, so it doesn’t matter what you tell them later on; they already learned from what you were doing, and those habits are going to perpetuate into the future. I can’t tell you how many times my perception of certain people has changed just from an interaction they had with me or someone else, and through that I learned what to do or not to do. With that, those mistakes are carried on and on, and we perpetuate them without even realizing them.

Open mind

Having an open mind means having the willingness to change when you realize that what you are doing isn’t beneficial anymore and that, beyond just satisfying your ego, it is actually hurting you in the end. What prevents people from having an open mind is the fear of change, ego, memories, strong beliefs, fear of the unknown, and lack of trust, so they’ll rather stay in the wrong way they know than try to better themselves with ways they know nothing about.

Think about those habits you have that aren't productive for you and yet persist in your life—maybe your arrogance, your way of speaking, your shyness, and much more. Stop perpetuating those mistakes, which only hurt you.

Thanks for reading ☺️

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