I heard the worst dance song on the way to work the other morning. It started with a — ummm…I don’t know — synthetic saxophone, maybe? That automatically makes it atrocious.
And, I loved it.
There air was chilly, misty. It wasn’t raining yet, but the atmosphere was pregnant with rain. It was still dark on the street.
It’s that kind of morning that seems to enforce a strict code of silence. As I boarded the bus, no one spoke. All faces stared straight ahead. Winter is coming. Darkness is already descending.
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I did not write this post on a Monday. I didn’t write it on (or even close to) New Year’s. It wasn’t on my birthday or any other personally significant day. Not a weekend. Not even the beginning of the day.
I wrote this in the middle of the week, about mid-morning. I’d already had my coffee and bagel. I’d already started my normal routine. I was far enough into my daily schedule that I’d already begun to feel disappointed by some of the choices I’d made earlier in the morning.
You are living as if destined to live forever; your own frailty never occurs to you; you don’t notice how much time has already passed, but squander it as though you had a full and overflowing supply….You act like mortals in all that you fear, and like immortals in all that you desire.
–Seneca
The time is now.
There isn’t a good day to start anything. The first of the month is just a number. “Next week” is only an excuse. The weekend won’t give you more time than you already have today. (Seriously, how many days will you give up, waiting for the weekend to arrive?) If it’s worth doing, do it now.
You can’t perfect something that doesn’t exist, so take the first step toward your dream immediately, even if you don’t have all the plans in place. Start now, so you’ll have something to perfect tomorrow. If it’s worth doing right, then do it right now.
Photo credit: estheticcore
Here’s a scary experiment. Take 10 minutes and reflect on your last year. What have you done? Write it all down. Well, not all of it, maybe. But, write down the things that matter to you. Write down how many goals you accomplished. Write down how many adventures you had. Just pick something that’s important to you, then write down how many times you did that in the last year.
I’ve done this. It’s scary. And it’s awesome. Let me tell you my story.
I used to think my life was pretty boring. I don’t do much. I’m overweight and out of shape. All my friends fly to exotic locations for tw0-weeks of vacation every summer…I fly nowhere. These are the thoughts that weigh me down sometimes.
Then, I decided to just start doing stuff. It’s been nearly a year since I started “doing stuff” and so I thought I would write a list of some of the things I’ve done since making that not-so-radical change. I was impressed with what I saw! I’m not the coolest guy to ever walk the earth, but I’m way cooler than I thought I was! I say that in all humility, of course. ;-)
Check this (partial) list out.
In the last 12 months….
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by Guy Kawasaki
by Seneca
by David Allen
by Scott Belsky
by Loren Cordain
by Peter Singer
by Charles Bukowski
