How many promises have you made to yourself? Tomorrow I’ll go to the gym. Tomorrow I’ll start writing the business plan. Yes, tomorrow I’ll start eating better. It’s that tomorrow syndrome that enables us to put off our dreams and watch others succeed. I know. I’ve been there. “No more sugary treats,” I tell myself, “once I finish this package of Twizzlers.” Until I’m in the grocery store and Twizzlers are on sale again. When you’re in a battle against who you are and who you want to be, ask yourself: Are you tired yet?
No More Excuses
Are you tired yet of being stuck where you are in life? I know that change is hard. We start off with a lot of momentum when we decide to create the habits that we hope will change our lives. But the moment it becomes difficult we fall back into what’s familiar. Hit the snooze button. Skip the gym workout or run. Sneak out to Popeye’s for lunch because we don’t want to eat another salad. Saddled by the tomorrow syndrome, now excuses drive our actions.
Since August 2023, when I joined the company for which I currently work, I’ve been making excuses that have held back me and my dreams. I told myself that my schedule didn’t give me enough time to write. There wasn’t enough time to prepare healthy meals, that’s why I ate crap. Too tired and not enough time, I couldn’t run. All excuses so that I could not do the hard things. Was it any wonder that I ended up unhappy with my life?
Are You Tired Yet?
In his book, Unfu*k Yourself, Gary John Bishop asks, “[…] are you willing to stop living the life you have and start living the life you’re after?”1 After numerous defeats and setbacks on my own change journey, I was ready to give up. Nothing I did made a difference. I struggled to create good habits that supported the vision I had for my life. I was on the verge of giving up on myself and my dreams.
Until I asked myself, Are you tired yet? Yes, I was tired of the life I was living. Tired of letting the excuses I told myself rule me and the day. Tired of all the noise and naysayers trying to convince me to be ordinary. But I was not tired of trying. I hadn’t come this far to give up. So, I took a moment to step back and think about the moments in the past when I was on point. What was I doing differently then than now? What obstacles were in the way?
Go Against the Tide
There is a lot of noise in this world that expects us to be available 24/7. And after I reflected on those past moments when I was focused and happy, I knew what I had to do. Since I hadn’t logged in to my social media accounts since April 2024, I decided to deactivate them. I went back to using the Chrome extension Stayfocusd and the Freedom app. Because I needed to reclaim my time, time to get back to what matters most.
And now I ask myself regularly, Are you tired yet of not living the life you’re after? That question is a reminder of my purpose, and compels me to get up every day and do the work. No more excuses. No more letting fear decide what I can and cannot do. Because I don’t need, or want, to be like everyone else. That is why it’s imperative to “focus on the moment, not the monsters who may or may not be up ahead.”2
Am I tired yet? No, and I’m going to keep on keeping on.
I want to tell you today that you are loved, you are worthy, and you matter. And you don’t need anyone’s permission to be—wholly and unapologetically—who you are.
[…] my ability to keep going, afraid to try again and fail. But like I wrote in last week’s blog post, I’m tired of the life I’m living. Tired of letting the excuses I tell myself rule me and the […]