It happens every 7 years. A shift, a change, a new beginning.
It has worked like that for me as long as I remember.
Do you follow the 7-year rule? There’s very little studies on this, but there are patterns. You can use it to your advantage. I know I had.
Let’s break it down.
The idea is that roughly every 7 years people need a significant life change to stay happy and motivated.
It’s psychological, biological and cultural all in one.
If we don’t follow through after 7 years, we get restless. Stagnating. Unhappy.
Does it mean you need to divorce your wife and move to another continent every 7 years? In some cases – maybe. If you’re unhappy then definitely.
But in most cases it doesn’t have to be as drastic.
Let me quickly walk you through my cycles:
At around 6 my family moved from an apartment into a house. I had a huge garden and a small forest to play in.
At 17 I went to the US as a foreign exchange student and graduated from high school.
Those first two big changes weren’t 7 years apart, because when we’re young it’s still calibrating.
But then…
At 24 I ditched my job and traveled to Northern Ireland. I worked at a night club, then at a restaurant waiting tables. It taught me resilience.
At 31 I bought my first apartment. At 35 I bought another and moved out to a different city.
Some of those cycles overlap one another. I started working as a designer in 1998. Which puts me in my fourth cycle of the same job.
After three cycles, exactly in 2019 I started educating people about design. Now that cycle is coming to an end and I’m switching to other things.
It looks like all the pieces are falling into place.
Why 7 years?
There’s a psychological need for change called hedonic adaptation. We get used to routines and after a while they cease to stimulate us. That’s the moment when our happiness returns to a baseline.
It can return to a slightly higher point, but nevertheless we feel empty. Lacking purpose. What used to be fun and energizing is now a chore.
I can totally relate to this when it comes to design. I’ve been doing it for so long, most of the magic is gone.
Of course, I still need to make money, but I’m in a fortunate enough position where I can pick my projects. And I almost exclusively pick ones that are „different”.
A product category I haven’t worked on yet. Physical devices. Research tech.
Things like designing a parking meter interface are way more interesting to me now, than almost any kind of „regular” website work.
After over 500 delivered projects it was inevitable.
You’re not the same person anymore
Another reason for this is biological. Every 5-10 years your body cells rebuild themselves. Seven falls exactly in the middle of that range.
Of course some cells do it much faster – like your skin. In that case it only takes weeks. But you can assume, after 7 years you’re simply not the same person anymore.
And a new person may need a new path too.
When you’re completely rebuilt, you may feel like it’s also time to start fresh in other areas.
The brain
Our brain can adapt and form new connections throughout our lives. It’s called neuroplasticity. Any new experience stimulate that growth.
And you can subconsciously feel that growth. That in turn boosts motivation to do more. Once you feel like you stagnate and growth slows, you get even more demotivated.
Change is necessary for our brain. It needs that workout.
Figuring out a solution to a brand new problem.
Symbolism
Seven is also considered a divine number. Tied to positive transformation. Not like that nasty six or overachiever eight!
People often switch jobs around that mark, or start rethinking their relationships with friends.
As we all change, after seven years the differences between you and your best friend can be so far apart it’s unsolvable.
What kind of change?
Change doesn’t have to be drastic. If you’re extremely unhappy in your marriage, then maybe it’s right to let that go and start fresh. But in most cases new hobbies, change of scenery or new friends can make all the difference.
Or go on some kind of adventure. Climb a mountain! Run a marathon!
Because we’re constantly overstimulated, it’s a bit easier now to start feeling stuck. After all, we compare ourselves to a façade of a life others share on socials. And it may be easier than ever to feel inadequate in our own lives.
Maybe a good change would be to ditch social media completely. But start smaller if you need to. Start anywhere.
Just start. It’s been 7 years already.
