I was chatting up with a couple of friends last weekend about life, money, women and all the good stuff. You know, stuff that sounds interesting especially when vodka is screaming down your veins.
We were talking about how in the past we lived linear lives. “Linear Lives?,” you would ask. “What in the name of God is that mate?” Well, it’s a term I invented to explain this part of our lives that many live unknowingly.
Most of us think about living like this:
“When I turn 30, I want to start my own business.”
“After I get my promotion, I want to take a vacation.”
“When I get my physique right, I am going to head out to the beach.”
blah blah blah. It never ends. Constraints over constraints over constraints over constraints. Don’t stop living because you can’t get some aspect of your life right. Live it while you are making it right.
You get the picture. Everything is linear. The chance that situation Y will occur depends largely on situation X. This in my mind is a great folly in thinking.
We have always been told, wait till you finish your education, and you can then do x, y and z. Do not do a, b or c until you have finished 1, 2 and 3.
The world tells these things to us, and we continue on. Life goes on. Many don’t even realize it; forever. I propose that we have multiple streams going on simultaneously. Push yourselves to the limit. If you have been waiting to take that vacation, TAKE IT NOW!
If you have been holding to start your business until you turn 30, DO IT NOW.
There is no such thing as waiting for tomorrow. While you sit here and wait for that picture perfect moment to arise, life is passing you by. In this faster-than-the-speed-of-light age, there is very little time to waste. Every day, that you sit and waste, pushes you back.
There’s only one situation in which I would recommend following the “Linear Life” principle, and that is, to get out of debt.
There is nothing worse than being in a financial crisis. You need to put that behind you one way or the other. And if that means, working 3 jobs, so be it. But your first goal should be to figure out how to get out of debt. Not only how to get out of debt, but to also create a vehicle that produces unlimited riches for you. For many that is starting their own business, for others it is finding a means of generating residual income etc etc.
Once you have that going for you, nothing in life can stop you. The world has changed a lot. A real lot. You can now put your skills out for people to critique in a matter of minutes. Think you are a good singer? Record a song and put it on YouTube. Think you can act well? Find at least 10 online audition sites and put your video out. You will receive instant feedback.
Another thing I strongly believe in is the IN-OR-OUT principle. I don’t like being in a limbo. I’d rather get IN and enjoy life or I’d rather get OUT and learn my lesson from it and move on. I think a lot of people procrastinate everything in life because they fear failure.
My friends, there is no such thing as failure. It’s all feedback. Feedback is what matters and that is what changes life. You think Honda would’ve been where he got with fear of failure? You think Abraham Lincoln would’ve made it as a president with fear of failure? Put yourself out there. Get tested, in every way possible and life will be more fun.
Don’t forget your goal, consciously work towards it. The journey is what matters, the destination is just an outcome.
Wow, a cup of tea tastes so good when you write about stuff that means a lot to you.
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