We Keep Chasing The Opposite When The Moment We Want Is Already Here
The Mike Muldoon Podcast: Bite-Sized Coaching Sessions Empowering Transformation in Small Doses
Manage episode 514385782 series 3636467
A blazing sauna. An icy plunge. A mind that can’t sit still. Sound familiar?
We start with a simple gym-side story that mirrors how we live: always craving the opposite of what we have, sprinting toward the next form of relief. From the bagel shop grind to the quick flip from heat to cold, it’s the same pattern — restless attention, fleeting satisfaction.
Together, we unpack hedonic adaptation — the brain’s habit of resetting joy to baseline after any change. The same survival software that once kept us safe now fuels a constant search for “better.”
But what if, instead of chasing the next thing, you learned to catch the flip — that exact moment when the thought “I can’t wait until…” appears? That instant is your doorway back to presence.
If it’s hot, be hot.
If it’s cold, be cold.
When you fully inhabit the moment, you stop outsourcing peace to a future condition and start building it where you stand.
We also explore real-time gratitude as a lever for calm — not a list at day’s end, but a felt thank you inside discomfort: gratitude for the heat that tests you, for the cold that wakes you. With simple cues and repeatable reps, this practice strengthens resilience — not by finding the perfect temperature, but by expanding your tolerance across seasons, workloads, and mood swings.
The goal isn’t to avoid extremes. It’s to carry calm through them.
If you’re tired of living for the next phase, this conversation offers a practical path to feeling okay — even when the moment isn’t.
If this resonates, subscribe, leave a rating, and share it with someone who keeps adjusting the thermostat on their life.
So — what “other thing” is your mind chasing today?
Instagram: @mikemuldoonlc
Website: www.themikemuldoonpodcast.com
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Chapters
1. Starting A Shop, Staying Human (00:00:00)
2. Sauna, Cold Plunge, And A Flip (00:00:37)
3. The Trap Of The Other Thing (00:02:01)
4. Hedonic Adaptation Explained (00:02:39)
5. Catching The Flip And Being Present (00:03:21)
6. Gratitude, Resilience, And Real Peace (00:04:06)
7. Closing And Listener Requests (00:05:01)
152 episodes