What’s up with all the news of the obvious these days?  I logged onto my computer to read the news this morning and there were three studies printed that make me think – are we really this stupid that we need a study to confirm something we already know is true?

First, “Science Confirms Sad People Eat More Chocolate” – ah, duh.  Are they doing a commission on Haagen Daaz too?  That was always my favorite thing to face plant after a horrible break up or bad day at work.  Yes, sad people eat more chocolate.  Why?  Because they are sad and want to distract or comfort themselves with a candy bar.  It is easier, after all, than facing the emotions you feel.

Next, study says “Distracted Nurses Make More Errors” – again, no shit.  Everyone is distracted by the pace of life, dizzying technology and treadmill that we are running on.  Does it surprise you that you might make a mistake if you are steering your car with your knee while you are distracted by a text about tonight’s carpool for soccer?  It doesn’t surprise me one bit that a nurse, who’s distracted by a double shift, short staff or the complications of modern life – might not be doing the IV start just right and an air embolism is in someone’s future.

And finally, one that is hardly a shocker – your bad habits of smoking, drinking, inactivity and poor diet can take 12 years off your life.  The sad part is – it won’t make a damn bit of difference to people to know that statistic.  People already know that smoking, drinking too much, being fat and lazy and eating crap will kill you.  They just don’t seem to care.

I wonder about this a lot.  We know our bad habits are killing us.  We know that we are in the wrong relationships – and yet we stay.  Not only do we stay – we fight for the right to stay.  We argue about how hard it is to quit smoking, to lose weight, to break up with the jerk you are dating.

Yes, there are reasons why it is hard to quit, especially in the case of smoking.  From gene mutation, to the fact that nicotine is as addictive as heroin.  There are reasons why it is hard to exercise, especially if you’ve gotten to the point where you believe nothing will make a difference.  You have to fight for what you want.  If you fight, you will get it.

My theory is simple.  We’ve stopped fighting for our lives.  You may feel like you are fighting against life because you hate your job, or your marriage is in shambles or you don’t have the money you want to have – that’s not what I’m talking about.  That’s not fighting life – that’s not enjoying where your life is at and feeling stuck.

I’m talking about fighting for what you want.   Life is too easy in the modern world.  You can survive despite yourself.  Eat yourself within an inch of your life, have lap band surgery and then take Lipator and you’ll be all set for another decade.  From an evolutionary perspective, you aren’t wired for an easy time. Human beings were designed for scarcity, and to fight for their survival.  To run when they see a tiger.  To search and gather their food.  You are hard wired to fight for your health, your day-to-day shelter and your food.  But you don’t.  You can call Dominos and have a pizza delivered in 30 minutes – so why on earth would you plant a garden instead?  You can start your diet tomorrow – so why would you fight yourself over wanting nachos right now?

You don’t have to fight anymore.  We’ve made life so easy that it is killing us.  Your survival is supposed to take work and you are working for it.  The only threat in the world today – is you.  Your resignation, your laziness, your scaredy-cat mentality.  You know something is missing in your life.  You are right.  You are missing the fight for what you want.  All the studies in the world won’t make a bit of difference in your life – until you pick a fight.