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Ep. 91 - Not Choosing Is Choosing: Disengaging Autopilot
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Have you ever felt like you’re moving through life on autopilot—checking off the to-do lists, meeting obligations, doing what’s expected—without feeling truly alive? You're not necessarily unhappy, but you're not fully alive either. You feel like you're just going through the motions.
That restless, 'blah' or 'meh' feeling has a name: languishing.
Psychologists like Adam Grant describe languishing as the absence of well-being—not quite burnout, not quite depression, but a sense of stagnation and emptiness, and an important sign that something about how you’re engaging with your life needs attention.
In this episode, we explore what it really means to wake up to your life. We’ll talk about the hidden reason behind restlessness, why not choosing is still a choice, and how to shift from being a passive passenger to the active pilot of your own life.
If you've ever wondered, Is this all I'm going to do with my life?—this episode is for you.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
- Why that sense of restlessness or stagnation (languishing) is actually a powerful signal.
- The difference between default mode and autopilot mode—and why understanding them changes everything.
- How your brain defaults to the path of least resistance unless you intentionally choose otherwise.
- Why not choosing is still making a choice—and how to take back control.
- A simple but powerful framework to override autopilot and start moving with purpose.
Cited Resources
- TED Talk | Adam Grant: How to Stop Languishing and Start Finding Flow
- Quote | "For me, happiness is the joy we feel striving after our potential." - Shawn Achor
Click here for a downloadable worksheet containing:
- Key takeaways and summaries
- Reflection questions to apply the episode’s insights
- Practical exercises to help you shift out of default mode and engaging with your life again
If this episode resonated with you, please take a moment to share it with someone who might find it helpful.
Life can be so much more than we think. And that's where we start - with your thinking. See how your thoughts have been holding you back, and how mindset tools can help you cut through the noise and move forward.
At the end of the day, we have one life.
How do you want to live yours?
Think about it.
And then, let's get to work.
Book a call. Visit KariWatterson.com.
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