Sometimes we have a tendency of falling into a routine that we cruise through. When this happens, we usually get slapped in the face with boredom and lack of ambition. Such could happen when we become stenciled into a routine or template lifestyle. “Same thing, different day” and “Can it be Friday yet?”, or worse, “Can it by Happy Hour yet?”, are frequent brain farts that come to mind.
WHY? Why go relax on cruise control towards mediocrity?
There are two simple steps to fix this, and hopefully, allow you to appreciate and seize every moment of life given to you.
Enjoy Every Minute
Wake up each day believing that you will enjoy every minute of the day. Yes even those minutes you spend brushing your teeth, stuck in traffic, waiting in line, or those awkward elevator rides with strangers. Or the minutes your grooving to your favorite song, the first bite of the perfect lunch, watching your team comeback in the 4th quarter, or even those awkward elevator rides with the cute girl/guy.
Use the hard times you’re experiencing now as fuel for motivation and drive. Think about it. Perhaps the strongest and even best memories you have are when you failed big time, hit the lowest of the lows with friends, or when you overcame an adversity. Those stories are always the best to tell and hear. Look at comedy movies; most of them deal with some type of adversity or failure (The Hangover comes to mind). So relish every minute of the day, great or horrible. I guarantee you will reflect back years from now, smile, and laugh it off.
Seize Every Day
Steve Jobs discussed this in his infamous Stanford commencement speech. He would look into the mirror every day and ask himself a question. “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?”. If he answered no too many days in a row, then he would know he had to change something in his life. Jobs then continues to say;
“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important thing I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life, because almost everything–all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure–these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.”
Realizing that every day is gift will motivate you to use it wisely, invest it, rather than taking it for granted and wasting it on the unlimited distractions available today. Invest each and every day on activities that will assist you to achieve your goals, living your purpose, and just kicking ass in life.
Remind yourself every single morning you wake up. Every time you reach for that snooze button, or every time you want to procrastinate or push a task aside for “tomorrow”. Everything is a state of mind, an attitude, a reality that you can create for yourself. You can decide each morning you wake up whether today is going to be an awesome or shitty day; its really up to you and the attitude you choose to wake up with. Why not be known as that guy, or that girl, that always wakes up on the right side of the bed, every morning.
Don’t let the minutes and days pile up on you. Never adopt the “Same thing, different day” mentality. Enjoy every minute and seize every day instead.
Hey Ronnie great post man. I have to say that making sure I remind myself of what I want out of life each and every day and saying what I’m greatful for and just taking my time in the morning to think about the positives really helps set the mod for the overall day.
On the days that I don’t little things like someone cutting me off in traffic can really get to me and then my attitude overall through out the day starts to go down.
I really enjoyed your post! I think that the idea of looking positively – even at the mundane – can yield some amazing things. For example, I have found that if I maintain this type of perspective through a hard day at work, it will carry over into the next day or week – I won’t dread a meeting or deadline because I have fortified the positively from the previous day 🙂
Once you can adopt this simple mindset, you’ll definitely find it contagious. Not just for yourself, but even to those around you. Appreciate the kind words Beth!
“If he answered no too many days in a row, then he would know he had to change something in his life.”
Personally, I would rather not be working on the last day of my life, no matter how much I loved my job.
About enjoying every minute, however, I am a firm believer. Disasters make the best stories, especially the ones that you share with others. It seemed horrible at the time, but I look back fondly at my camping trip during the blizzard of ’93 or the week at summer camp that only had 3 dry hours.
I really need to see the Hangover. I have the DVD sitting on the shelf just waiting for me.
Yes Edward, you have got to see the Hangover. I had never saw the commercials before and wasn’t happy to be dragged into a movie I had no expectations of, but I ended up having one of the greatest times of my life laughing in a movie theater.
Ronnie, it can’t be said enough. Now I just need to repeat these tips to myself when my temper starts flaring as I navigate the jungles of this SoCal traffic.
Hahaha yeah, I feel ya on the traffic. We have lightweight traffic here in Sac comparared to SoCal, but still. That’s where you ditch the radio and create a customized playlist for traffic in particular. Great music can stir up good emotions.
I totally agree with ya Edward. Whenever I get together with old friends, the best conversations usually center on reflecting back on the crazy/memorable/wow I cant believe we did that moments.
Watch the Hangover, asap.
Awesome article Ronnie! I often struggle with enjoying every minute of the day because I don’t have the right attitude. It’s like that Charles Swindoll quote, “I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you… we are in charge of our Attitudes.” I sometimes find it challenging to psych myself into a positive attitude, but one way I like to approach it is by being genuinely grateful for what I have or what I experience in my life good or bad. In a single moment, I try to find something that I’m thankful for.
Thanks Dariane, definitely agree with the “90% of how I react..” quote. AKA “lifes what you make it”, and you start that by focusing on each minute and each day. Finding something your thankful is a great tip!
Might sound totally weird, but I remember reading a study that if you actually make yourself smile, you slowly become a little bit more happier/positive. Try it out, lol.
It’s been said many times. At the end of your life, you’re much more likely to regret the things you DIDN’T do than the things you did.
Nice article.
Thanks Dave!