Friction-Maxxing: The Unsexy Habit That's Actually Fixing Your Brain
- Chloe Markham
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
Friction-maxxing is an annoying TikTok trend. It’s also sort of brilliant.
Here's my take:
Our attention-spans are mush, as a species we’re fatter than ever, and our spines are turning into the comfort-shaped curves of expensive couches.
Why? Because everything is designed for ease.
Next-day delivery. Hot water on tap. Mindless entertainment a second away. We’ve built, designed, and occupied a world designed for every comfort imaginable. And it’s sort of wrecked us.
Enter: friction-maxxing.
No, I’m still not talking about ice baths or freezing showers or 20-hour fasts. I want to introduce you to the concept of adding a tiny bit less automatic ease into our days.
This helps rebuild our shitty attention capacity, widens our window of tolerance, improves resilience, and rebuilds our crumbling mental health.
How to incorporate friction-maxxing into your day:
Delete social media apps and, for the love of god, stop scrolling endlessly.
Set a timer to read a book for a period of time without reaching for a device.
Turn your phone off at night.
Stop double-screening (if you feel pulled to grab your phone while watching
something, watch something better).
Don’t automatically fill your ‘bored’ time with entertainment.
Think about lifting weights a couple times a week (doesn’t have to be a big deal).
Wait for the kettle to boil without simultaneously doing something else.
Stop multi-tasking. Fuck me, please stop multi-tasking.
Learn to do something hard, from scratch, that you’re not all that good at (instruments, art, writing, building, creating…).
It really doesn’t need to look big, wellness-trending, or impressive. It can be tiny, everyday stuff that helps you regain mental freedom, build resilience, and rediscover your creativity and happiness.
What tiny thing could you do today?
I’m off to practice this 10-page Beethoven behemoth I’ve been learning for a year on the piano. Talk about friction.
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