Seize The Day - Part 1
The thought that started it all pouring out.
People say “I don’t know how you do all the things you do, Jo” and I am quick to say that I drop plenty of balls in the attempt. But the real answer is simply this:
I’ve learnt to commit.
To analyse each opportunity as a value proposition and say YES to the things that matter.
Big things, small things. Small things that become big things.
You never know where one tiny step will take you in the end, especially if you choose not to take it because you are “too busy” or “too tired.” Often, we feel tired in life because of that “energy in > energy out” problem. When a task (or personal interaction) pulls more energy from us than it gives back, that’s an energy suck. Too many of them and you’ll be feeling like the Man In Black after a session with “The Machine.”
Energy-diminishing activities feel like a chore all the way through, and any feeling of virtuousness for doing them is drowned out by tiredness. They leave us wanting to vegetate / go into stand-by mode / crawl under the blankets for the next 6 weeks.
The trouble is, while we are feeling sucky, we will often overlook little opportunities to do energy building activities. Like being too tired to go for a walk in the sunshine, when in fact, that walk would return you home feeling twice as energised and much happier. Looking for “energy in =< energy out” activities takes awareness and courage. To be looking for opportunities, and then to be brave enough to say yes to them when the life suck is dragging you to your couch. Like any new cognitive process, practice will eventually turn it into a habit.
Energy-increasing activities leave us feeling more energised or more joyous, at peace or satisfied.
Some people come by this habit naturally - just the way they have always been. I personally look back at my early 20s and wonder how I did so little. The shift for me came through grief and the wake-up call you get when you are brought face to face with the mortality of someone close to you. I used to say “never put off till tomorrow what you can postpone indefinitely,” but didn’t mean it in the way I do now: if it’s not important enough to you to prioritise it, it shouldn’t be on the list. These days I’m more likely to say “tomorrow is not promised” and live by that, taking opportunities when they are here and not trusting that they will come again.
Energy-neutral activities take effort, but we do them because they align with our values or because we believe in them. They don’t personally raise us up, but they also don’t pull us down.
Back when I was running 7 days a week, I used to take a lot of photographs. That was half the pleasure and half the incentive to get out of bed before dawn so I could be there to capture the morning golden hour, the long shadows and fresh delight of the new day. People would say “I ran that same road around the same time as you but I didn’t see those things.” Because I had trained my eyes to look for light and colour, shape and form and detail in the world around me. And I would stop for a moment and capture what I saw. I mean, it certainly slowed me down, but oh, the increased value in the experience! The appreciation of the journey instead of the destination or “getting it done.”
And that photographer’s perspective certainly helped train my “now or never” mindset. A couple of times I saw a great picture and thought “I’ll take a picture on my way back,” only to find, on the return journey the light had changed, or a car was in the way, or I forgot, and the moment was past. So I learned to take 10 seconds to grab the shot, to capture the moment.
Because moments are fleeting and you’ll never get the same one twice.
