The Redundancy of Life

This idea just hit me again—and every time it does, it lands a little deeper.

Life is redundant.
Or maybe, more accurately: life is full of redundancies.

Let me explain what I mean.

In engineering, redundancy is the intentional duplication of critical components or functions of a system. These backups aren’t a mistake—they’re a feature. Their entire purpose is to make the system more reliable and resilient in the face of failure.

Think about it:

• Airplanes have multiple engines. If one fails mid-flight, the others keep the plane in the air.

• Your phone backs up to the cloud. If you lose it, your memories, photos, and contacts are still safe.

• Hospitals have backup generators—sometimes even backups for the backups—because lives are on the line, and failure isn’t an option.

Redundancy is how systems make sure failure doesn’t have the last word.

And lately, I’ve realized: life works the exact same way—with lessons.

Life Has Built-In Backups

The system of life is designed to teach you what you need to learn. And if you miss the lesson the first time? Life will bring it back. Different packaging, same core message.

A conversation. A mistake. A job. A financial decision. A win you weren’t ready for.
A feeling you swore you’d never feel again—until you did.

Life is redundant on purpose.
It repeats lessons you fail to learn until you finally learn, adapt, or grow.

And here’s the thing: these lessons usually aren’t new.
You already know better.
You just don’t do better.

But until you do, life will keep handing you teachable moments like clockwork.

The Wisdom We Ignore

It’s why old proverbs and clichés stick around.

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”
“Consistency is the key to success.”
“There’s no substitute for hard work.”
“Dreams don’t work unless you do.”

You’ve heard them before. Probably nodded along. Maybe even reposted one or two.
But if the lesson hasn’t clicked for you, life will send it again—louder, clearer, and sometimes more painfully.

You’ll keep circling the same mountain, facing the same test in a different form… until you pass.

Pay Attention

• Pay attention to the patterns.

• The repeated disappointments.

• The avoidable mistakes you keep making.

• The feelings of “I knew better…”

• The “this time will be different” moments that somehow aren’t.

That’s not bad luck.
That’s not coincidence.
That’s the Redundancy of Life.

A Clear Example

Let’s say you’ve had multiple jobs over the years, and in each one, you find yourself clashing with management.

You start off excited and motivated, but after a few months the same thoughts creep in:

So, you leave. You find a new job. The energy is better—until it’s not. The same frustrations return. The pattern repeats.

That’s not just a string of bad bosses.
That’s life re-running a lesson.

Maybe it’s time to ask:

• Have I learned how to manage up?

• Have I clearly communicated what I need?

• Have I asked if my expectations are realistic?

• Have I considered how my own habits contribute to the conflict?

Until you learn what life is trying to teach you—how to handle conflict, how to advocate for yourself, how to build emotional intelligence in professional settings—you’ll keep getting dropped into the same dynamic.

Different company.
Different boss.
Same lesson.

That’s the redundancy of life.

It doesn’t repeat to frustrate you.
It repeats to free you.