As the end of May rolled around, I decided to do an audit of how I had spent the month. If I did anything well, it was that I made it to the gym or out for a run every day but one. There were days when I didn’t feel like it, or when I was too tired (the one day I missed), but I did it anyway. While I wrote every day, I was constantly distracted by my phone and anything else that vied for my attention. What I realized was that I hadn’t really moved forward, and it was time for me to wake up.
The Cost of Doing Nothing
One of the worst feelings in the world is knowing that what you’re doing isn’t what you feel called to do. You’re not on purpose, and as the days pass you wonder if anything will ever change. But the only way for things to change is for you to change.
As I was finishing up a shift one Saturday morning, a colleague and I were talking about how drained we were on our days off. She was so tired that on her day off she missed a class. The fatigue hit me on my day off, too. I was so exhausted that I couldn’t hold my focus long enough to write or read. One more day when there was no forward momentum, when—even though I knew what I had to do—I couldn’t wake up. I realized that the cost of doing nothing was beginning to add up.
Wake Up
I mentioned recently that I now participate in group coaching, which is led by Rob Dial. The people coming together all want to, in one way or another, transform their lives. Because twelve months from when we join the program, no one wants to be in the same place. Stuck. Unhappy. Doing the same thing. For the month of June, we’re challenging ourselves to change a habit and do something that will move us forward.
My conversation with my colleague the other day made me wake up. It was [another] reminder of how I wasn’t where I wanted to be. But again, nothing will change unless I do. So, I’ve committed to getting back to writing for one hour without distractions. And while I’ve succeeded in these first few days of the challenge, there is still that pull to reach for the phone. Or check e-mail. Or ‘fact check’ on the internet. Sometimes I’m just tempted to get up and see what’s in the fridge. But in the moment, I remind myself of my ‘why’ and keep working on the task at hand. Because doing the work is the only thing that matters.
If you haven’t already, wake up. Life is short. Don’t let it pass you by.
Let me, then, leave you today with this last thought…
You are loved, you are worthy, and you matter. And, best of all, you do not need anyone’s permission to be—unapologetically—who you are.
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