The most difficult aspect of design, whether it’s happiness, success, or the space between is finding ways to scaffold the gap, tension or issues, rather than try to change people. Even though trying to change people is almost impossible, it’s easier to do because we’ve spent the past 100 years thinking it’s the right thing to do.

Often I talk about scaffolding which is such a large part of producing and maintaining, or sustaining @F-L-O-W, not just the state, but the environment for the state or psychology of @F-L-O-W to emerge again and again, making compounding possible.

Let’s start with a simple example:

For whatever reason, I find it difficult to stop and wash my hands as often as I should. I know that it is not tied to my happiness, as I’m kind of a slob, low order, and I despise routine, even when it’s good for me.

As I live in emerging countries, cleanliness is not a routine part of most of these countries and because of the number of people and organisms that co-habitate, people are always passing things around because, if anything, we need to wash our hands much more than what we take for granted in the west.

On the one hand, I sometimes think I hate doing the things necessary to stay as clean as I should, as it’s just not on my agenda.  Yet for success, if I don’t engage in these things I’m not motivated to do, I can get sick more often.

So, there is a gap between what I should do (success) and what I need to do (motivation), and therefore I need to change?

Wrong, it doesn’t last.

Here’s why.

The motivation to NOT do it, is always going to trump doing it, at least habitually… I guess I could use will power… but actually I’m smarter than that to think that "willing" myself is ever going to resemble @F-L-O-W, but I really don’t like being sick all the time either. I’m now old enough to be a protected species! hehehe (chat laughing), LOL!

So, the dilemma, the gap, the problem, what to do… and since I can’t/won’t/don’t change, do I just grin and bear it?

Actually, now is the time to look for scaffolding, in its myriad forms.

What I did was simple and I love it.

Even though, there is controversy about using hand sanitizers, I like using those for some reason. So, I got the squirt kind where it’s just easy to squirt it into your hand and then gently massage your hands and fingers until it drys.  I don’t have to use water (I might be allergic to it for bathing, not sure<G>)… soap, or need towels, almost as bad, or waste disposable hand towels.

Now, I’m sure there are drawbacks, but for me, this really works.  I find myself sanitizing my hands ALL the time and I feel that I am doing some good, as sanitizing for sure is better than nothing and it feels great to me, to be able to squirt and go –> so to speak.

As a pacesetter, I don’t have a lot of patience, especially for habits that take a long time (I know, its idiosyncratic, but aren’t we all?)… and it’s inexpensive, and leaves my hands feeling great.

All I did was substitute an act that fit with my "utility, my impatience, my low order, and a host of other things that worked for me.”  I keep the stuff everywhere I should wash my hands, and it’s simple.

Now, you won’t think that is a big deal, but what I hope is it takes some of the mystery of scaffolding and designing happiness and success and the space in between.

Helpful Hint: Scaffolding is as simple as it needs to be. If we spent more time, scaffolding ourselves and designing systems that worked when we didn’t, @F-L-O-W would emerge as an everyday thing in our lives, and our productivity, joy, and success would improve.

Action Step: Try it on yourself. Find something that you should do, but don’t/won’t do, and see if you can design a scaffolding process that holds you up, while you’re getting into alignment, or actually creates alignment where you can wake up and be, do, have, and become happy and successful, even though there is no real match.