There is a Reason I Keep Minimums to Progress Toward My Goals.
I have a Tendency to go Overboard.
In All Aspects of My Life.
I want to Experience Life.
As Much As Possible.
I Enjoy It.
I Thrive In It.
We have a Limited Amount of Time.
To Live.
You Never Know When It's Over.
Even when people Live a Full Life, it Still Seems Too Short.
So, I've always had a Desire to Go Experience what I'm Able.
While I'm Able.
There is, of course, Always a Downside to Living Life like this.
Just take for Example my Life Recently.
I have been on a Trip since the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.
That makes today... Day 10 it seems.
I Flew to Chicago and then to Florida where I am spending my Final Day Traveling before I head back to Texas.
But have I Rested Much on this Trip?
Absolutely Not.
I Went to Experience Life.
Thanksgiving with my Spouse's Side of the Family in Chicago.
Spending time with Family There.
I Tried Tufting for the First Time and made a small rug.
Went to a German Market in the Freezing Cold.
Participated in a Spartan Unbreakable Event 3k Obstacle Course Race, including Lifting Boulders and Buckets Filled with Sand (70+ Lbs), as well as Giant Tire Flips.
Went to Walt Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park.
Saw the New Movie and Musical Epic "Wicked Part 1" which is a 3-Hour Movie Event, as well as the Movie "Red One".
Tried Many New Food Places.
Then, of course, I did a bit of Shopping.
It is the Holiday Season.
Plus, I also Hit My Minimums.
Wrote an Article Every Day.
Ran at least One Mile.
Which Would Not have been Possible without having Minimums.
I also did some Work Here and There, as Able.
This Includes a Few Things.
Client Coaching Sessions.
Work Around Certifications and Courses I'm Taking.
Replying to Emails and Comments.
Reading (Though, Not As Much as I Wanted).
It is Quite a Bit when you Stop and Look.
How Much Sleep Have I Gotten?
Not Nearly Enough.
Last Night I know I was Up until about 2 AM and I Woke Up Today at 7 AM.
Most of the Days have been like that.
All to Ensure I Experienced Life.
I have Loved Every Minute of it.
I Treasure this time that I've been able to Spend with my Wonderful Spouse.
Being able to Push My Own Limits.
Physically and Mentally.
The Ability to Express the Ideas that go through my Mind, and Help My Clients and those who Follow my work.
I'm Incredibly Blessed.
The Thing Is...
Living this way is Unsustainable in the Long Term, as much as I Enjoy It.
You Cannot Burn the Candle at Both Ends Without Consequences.
Eventually, the Rope Burns Out.
That is When Bad Things Happen.
Injury.
Sickness.
You Stop "Experiencing" Life and Start Going "Through The Motions".
Worse.
That is Not a Way to "Live" Life.
You Become No Better than a Zombie.
I have Seen Far Too Many Zombies Walking Through Life.
Many People think that Experiencing Life is Always About Doing More.
Always Pushing Further.
Always Striving For Higher Levels of Success.
But That Is Not True.
Should We Do More, Push, and Strive?
Sure, there's Nothing Wrong with that...
Unless it Comes at the Expense of "Actually" Experiencing Life Around Us.
To Truly Experience Life, We Cannot Always Do More, Push and Strive.
That is a Path To Destruction.
Rather, Fully Experiencing Life is about Cycles.
We Must Go Through Recovery.
We Push, then Rest.
We Do More, then Do Less.
We Strive, then Recover.
This Cycle is the Only Way to Fully Experience Life.
When you Reach the End of the Rope, You Cannot Burn Further.
You Must Slow Down.
Adjust.
Learn.
Rest.
Grow.
Recover.
Appreciate.
Experience Gratitude.
This is Essential to the Experience.
It is a Necessary Component for the Heights of Living.
It is the "Only" Way to Fully Live.
It is the Wayset We Need as Humans.
I am Reaching the End of My Rope.
I Feel It.
The Need to Sleep.
The Strain in my Neck and Shoulders.
The Foggy Feeling in My Mind Growing.
Over the Next Few Days, I will be Recovering.
I will Still Hit My Minimums.
Period.
But I will Primarily Focus on Recovery.
Finishing the Cycle.
To Fully Live.