Are We Dying for the Ultimate Life?
CONFESSIONS OF A SPRINTING ACHIEVER, Part 2.
ARE WE DYING FOR “THE ULTIMATE LIFE?”
LIVE IT . . . NOW!
- The Only Obstacle is Sprinting Over Obstacles.
- Life is Just an Obstacle Away.
- Confessions of a Sprinting Achiever.
- A Recipe for Life, Without Natural Preservatives, is Poisonous.
- How can it be my Ultimate Life, if I have to die to live it?
- How to live the Ultimate Life right now!
If you can stop sprinting for a few minutes, you will find insights and suggestions in this article for living a life that you don’t have to die for.
Consider this thought provoking quote by Fr. Alfred D’Souza, as referenced in Arianna Huffington’s book, Thrive:
For a long time it seemed to me that life was about to begin – real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time to still be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life. Fr. Alfred D’Souza.
The Only Obstacle is Sprinting and Obstacle Jumping.
Could it be, that our sprinting from obstacle to obstacle, is actually the one and only obstacle that must be overcome, in order for us to live the our vision of the Ultimate Life? Could sprinting be the obstacle in our way to happiness and joy?
Absolutely, especially if our vision of the ultimate life, fails to include important details as to how we want to think, feel and be, on a daily basis.
At some level, we all know that all of our goals are intended to bring us joy and happiness, which are typically the underlying goals. We Sprinting Achievers, spend hundreds, or even thousands, of hours, contemplating goals, making plans and schedules, based upon the assumption that, if we just achieve our goals, then we will be happy and really enjoy life.
Life is Just an Obstacle Away.
So why do we keep achieving goals, only to find over and over again, that our Ultimate Life is still an obstacle away? How much thought and planning goes into the most important aspect of our ultimate life? How much of our plan is dedicated to describing in detail, our goals related to how we want to think, feel and be, on a daily basis, not only when we achieve each of our goals, but also while we are on the journey?
Although goals evolve, change and are achieved, if we are alive, we always have a goal. Whether it be to become a gazzillionaire or simply to breathe one more breath. So it’s no surprise, that if we do not have a complete recipe that includes thoughts, feelings and being, it’s a life recipe to die for.
Confessions of a Sprinting Achiever.
At age 23, I first listened to Tony Robbins’ Personal Power cassette tapes and I’ve been a Sprinting Achiever, sprinting through life, optimistic that “any day now,” my idea of the ultimate life was going to show up. The ultimate life for me was encapsulated into three consistently evolving goal lists, personal, things and financial goals. During the twenty-something years that followed, I reviewed my goals regularly and revised my goals annually (at times every six months) checking-off achieved goals, adding new goals and deleting ones that no longer held interest for me.
However, there came a point when I realized that a consistent sprint, was unsustainable long-term. It was clear that new models and templates must be adopted and that my life depended upon it. Don’t get me wrong, Tony Robbins’ courses and shared insight, together with other resources, have helped me achieve nearly every goal I’ve committed to. I am grateful and thankful for the insights Tony has shared.
A Recipe for Life, With Natural Preservatives, is Poisonous.
At the same time, my recipe for the Ultimate Life, like millions of other sprinting achievers, was missing an essential ingredient, the absence of which rendered it poisonous. My recipe lacked natural preservatives and so I was dying for my ultimate life. In other words, my lifestyle of achieving through sprinting was killing me.
How can it be my Ultimate Life, if I have to die to live it?
As I write this, now fifty years of age and just hours after, for the first time in my life, I seriously considered taking anti-anxiety medication. Then, I gently said to myself, “what the [bleep] am I doing?” This was followed by my gentle response, “instead of living my Ultimate Life, I am dying for it, with each sprinted step I take.” I then gentle analyze, “wait a minute, is my vision of the Ultimate Life, worth dying for!? How can it be my Ultimate Life, if I have to die to live it?”
What I discovered through this experience; is that our recipe for the Ultimate Life, MUST INCLUDE DETAILS ABOUT OUR DAILY INNER LIFESTYLE. That is, how we will think, feel and be on a daily basis. Here is an example of daily inner lifestyle goals, for implementation now, not at the end of the rainbow.
- I WILL EASILY START EACH DAY OF THE REST OF YOUR LIFE, REMEMBERING WHO YOU REALLY ARE AND WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO ME [through morning meditation, yoga . . .]
- I WILL EASILY THINK, FEEL AND BE, IN ALIGNMENT WITH WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO ME, THROUGH OUT EACH DAY OF YOUR LIFE; AND
- I WILL EASILY REJUVENATE YOUR BODY WITH THE SLEEP MY BODY AND MIND NEED EVERY NIGHT.
If we wait until we get to the end of the rainbow before incorporating healthy inner lifestyle goals into our daily life, we may end up looking down at that pot of gold from where ever we go, rather than being alive to enjoy it. Creating a vision of your Ultimate Life, that does not include the way you will think, feel and be daily, is like trying to build a house without a solid foundation or support beams. It may look “nice” on the outside, but collapse is inevitable.
How to live the Ultimate Life right now!
So consider ending the sprinting and starting to live your version of MY LIFE IS A 10 NOW, by creating and committing to the abc’s of life, for example,
(a) I AM COMMITTED TO REMIND MYSELF EACH MORNING AND EVENING WHO I AM, HOW I WANT TO BE AND WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT TO ME, with MEDITATION and MOVEMENT (through yoga or other practices);
(b) I AM COMMITTED TO THINK, FEEL AND BE THE WAY I ENVISION IT IN MY ULTIMATE LIFE, NOW AND THROUGH OUT EACH DAY OF MY LIFE; and
(c) I AM COMMITTED TO REJUVENATING MY BODY AND MIND WITH ADEQUATE SLEEP EVERY NIGHT.
Article continues in CHRONICLES OF A SPRINTING ACHIEVER, Part 3. Coming Soon!
