Why do we put off our better lives until the future? For most of us, tomorrow will be a better day. Or at least we're hoping tomorrow will be better. Many of us gently lie to ourselves day after day, "Tomorrow things will change." But for that same majority, that glorious tomorrow never does come.
We are constantly faced with a couple questions…
- Why don't we make tomorrow a great day?
- Why don't strive to make the rest of today a great day?
Do note that we are merely faced with these questions. We are not demanded to answer them.
Sometimes we will say tomorrow will be a great day, as if today is a forgone conclusion. Why is this? We can still make today a great day, can't we?
Well, there is good news and bad news to this.
The Bad News First
To put it bluntly, time is limited. You've heard it before and it's also super cliché that "time is valuable" but let's face the facts: One day you are going to be dead. That's flat out grim. But it's the truth, and sometimes the grim truth staring us in the face is the dose of reality we need to hear.
If you've read or listened to enough personal development you've probably done an exercise envisioning your own funeral. If you haven't done that exercise do it now. If you can't remember what that felt like then do it again… right now. What are people saying about you? What is your eulogy? As you look down on yourself what are you saying, feeling, and thinking to yourself? Never forget that you'll never be able to bargain for or talk your way into acquiring more time. Do you really want to spend a large portion of your life waiting? Heck, I don't even want to wait in traffic for 2 minutes more than I have to!
Some people are okay with waiting all their lives. Are you?
The Good News
Now the good news. And you knew there was good news if you've been a student in our virtual classroom for any length of time. We delight in learning about life, and in life the bad is balanced with the good. Both paths are always there for anyone and everyone, but we are permanently in charge of choosing which we will let into our lives. That's an important responsibility we have.
Did you catch all the good news in that last paragraph? If you didn't then read it again and understand what it means to your life.
We are constantly choosing. Even when we feel out of control the gap between stimulus and response is a true power point in our lives.
Even though what we are contemplating sometimes seems to be between disaster or perfection we are, in fact, usually choosing between decent and good. If we consistently tip the favor towards good in a few areas, we will have more than just good results. We will most certainly have great results. A few goods won't offset many decents though.
Your Better Tomorrow Starts Now
We must truly realize that the elusive tomorrow is now today. Tomorrow came numerous times now, but we probably haven't capitalized on it like we wish we had. However, the power is in the present moment and we can make today great. We can almost assure ourselves at that point that tomorrow will likewise continue the trend. We have shifted the momentum to favor our better lives. It will be a great day.
You know at least one or two things you could do to really capitalize on this day. You knew it yesterday too. The difference now partly lies in your very conscious choice at this moment to make that beautiful tomorrow a reality or accept that it will be another confused, decent day you'll never care to remember.
| "You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great." Zig Ziglar |
Challenge to You
My challenge to you is to see how great you can make the rest of today. And tomorrow, try to make that day great as well. And tomorrow evening I want you to come back to this post and tell me what you did to make your day special. If it seems trivial because it is "just" reading a few pages in a new book or taking that first jog around the block, remember that that is where it all starts.
Go!
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14 comments:
You make a great point - most people (and I am guilty of this, myself) dream and think of "tomorrow" or some vague notion of "in the future" when things will be the way we want. We really do have to stand up and take charge when it comes to our life and our aspirations.
Great post :) Thanks for sharing! I'm not going to comb your blog for something to do with self-discipline, since it's my current focus.
Thanks! :)
- Reagan
Reagan, it really means a lot to me when fellow students of life say something meaningful like that. I really appreciate you taking the time to better yourself and then share your thoughts with me and everyone else.
As for self discipline, it's important, but I think it's over-rated to some degree. Like the great Zig Ziglar often says:
"Motivation often follows the act."
So I take that to mean two things.
1. Do what you think you should do regardless of how you feel. After that you'll feel better anyways.
2. When you do things you believe you should do, you intrinsically become more motivated. It's quite simple to build those discipline muscles, but it's just as easy not to.
We love to see progress as humans, and we are creatures of habit and inertia. So, make even just a little progress and that gets the ball rolling.
Doing things tomorrow, or putting things off to a later date, is commonly known as "someday" syndrome.
Someday I'll start writing that book...
Someday I'll start going to the gym...
There is no day on the calendar named Someday.
Alex
YourGoalBook.com
Alex that is very true.
"Someday maybe" is one of those infamous itis's!
Change is a GREAT part of achieving our goals. We're not going to get anywhere doing the same routine or being around the same type of people..like Oprah once said "Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher."
Thanks you so much for the awesome post :)
Yes, our life is what we make, If we choose to be positive and successful,we must start to think and act that way instead of day dreaming. We have to write a new script for our life. This script installation can be done with the help of positive affirmation and consulting with guides
Today, I took a long walk because lately I've been saying "Many it would be great to be outside more." and right before I read this I was preparing to actually write a long vision of what my life looks like so that I may take more conscious steps to create it and allow it to find me. :) and now I will begin.
Lovely post.
make tomorrow better than putting it off now. very insprating 4 me. According to my religious beliefs of Islam, stating that: do not delay your work until tomorrow's do it today.thanks 4 sharing.
Beautiful and very well said! I hope your blog will keep on inspiring other people to view life positively!
Our life is wasted when we are not living in the now but are living in the past or the the if's and when's of the future. Well said . Great post!!
okee..good..good..good..
Very sweetly written...Everyone sleep in the night and hope for tomorrow will be a good day and this blog will be very helpful for all of us for learning how to visualize tomorrow. Good job!!!!!
This blog sounds quite interesting. I was searching this kind of information. I will share this information with friends.
I am trying to think of where I heard the quote "Yesterday is History
Tomorrow is a Mystery
Today is a Gift, that's why
its called a Present!" - might have been kung fu panda but they are true words spoken in jest.
Of everything time is a gift of the present and how you react to everything determines the outcome.
The older I get the more i realise that being down is not worth my time as it is only a feeling and a perception created by your brain depending on your thoughts and and what you perceive. But this is not always the reality...
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