Convenience is exhausting.
Have you noticed?
Weâre surrounded by tools and technology that promise convenience, yet most of us feel more depleted than ever.
Which is why I initially rolled my eyes when I heard about âfriction-maxxingâ.
The term, coined by writer Kathryn Jezer-Morton, means deliberately adding effort back into parts of life so you slow down and become more intentional.
But the idea made me realise something.
Convenience is exhausting because it doesnât remove effort.
It just changes the kind of effort we expend.
We have to source the tools.
Integrate them into our lives.
Update them. Maintain them. Upgrade them.
Thatâs effort.
But itâs low-grade effort â fiddly, unedifying work that doesnât really make us better at anything.
Which is why the friction conversation is interesting.
Thereâs a difference between good friction and bad friction.
Bad friction is bureaucracy, admin and systems maintenance.
Good friction is effort that builds capability â learning something, making something, cooking, practising, thinking.
So the goal isnât a convenient life.
Itâs a life with the right kind of effort.
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