SoHo Manhattan, NY
Today was leg day. After going home to eat pasta at 10am (because I ran out of eggs/opportunity to create anything resembling breakfast), I showered then headed upstairs to get ready. I noticed halfway up to my room that I was running, a risky choice because A. it’s me and B. my legs feel like jello. I kept thinking on this (because what else is there to do while you’re penciling in your brows) until I realized, I always run up that flight of stairs.
I guess somewhere between neurons and subconscious, my body adapted to taking those stairs the most efficient way possible. After all, they’re not something I can really avoid.
Same for most things. As humans, we act and adjust constantly to make things better/quicker/longer/stronger/you get what I mean… It’s in our nature to be problem solvers, if not just for survival, then at least convenience!
But I’m not here to talk about adapting (we’ve got that down),
The challenge is doing.
Take me for example. I’m a mid-twenty something living in New York, getting to travel and foster multiple careers. I have time to socialize, be creative and even watch some TV. On top of all that, I’ve got benefits and a 401(k). So essentially I’m living a self-concocted dream… pretty sweet, right?
Creating this life (and following through with it) has been awesome, but hasn’t prevented me from falling short in other ways. I’ve gained weight, struggled with finances, and even grown a full-fledged fear of commitment, just to name a few. The positive feedback I’ve gotten from good changes has validated my laziness in others. From the outside this may not seem like a big deal… and at first, it wasn’t.
Over time though, small short cuts turned into big shortcomings. I started beating myself up for the things I had fallen out of, like going to the gym or writing blog posts regularly… I made excuses, staying up late and blaming exhaustion on work. These things didn’t erase everything I had become, but they were product of a person who had lost momentum.
It took me months to realize why I stopped trying. Somewhere along the way (with all the great life changes happening at once), my ego boosted itself enough to think I had somehow become a finished product. How stupid, right!? You think at 26 years old you’re going to have it all figured out and just get to sit pretty on a throne of your own “self-made” happiness? WRONG.
(sorry if that seems harsh, my inner dialogue is a rogue bitch)
Happiness is practiced dude, not earned. You can work to obtain all you want in a moment, but at some point, those things are going to stop being enough. Further, the parts of yourself that aren’t developed won’t go away simply because you got a new job or moved away.
You’ve gotta keep doing.
The intersection of craving and achieving is action. Get up early and go to the gym, check off that to do list and actually start cooking meals at home. There’s no secret pill or short cut to anywhere worth going. If you want to grow, stop waiting for rain and get to watering.
The ways you can go about doing this are endless. What’s important is to know that there won’t be a day of this life you aren’t a work in progress (I don’t care how old you are). So bridge your gaps, push for excellence, and become addicted to the climb. Before you know it, you’ll be running up stairs without even trying. That is, until you find a new set of goals and metaphorical stairs to take on.
So why not start now? Seriously though, let’s get going-
Thanks for joining along for the ride. Talk again soon, I promise!
Miss All over the place 