I’ll be honest: I feel like a broken record today. When I sat down to answer this, my mind immediately went back to a post I wrote just three weeks ago.
Back when I was getting married, my “cousin” PJ—he’s not technically family, but his mom was a childhood friend of mine, so the label stuck—gave me the best advice I’ve ever received, which I wrote about here recently. As the big day approached, he said, “Rob, try to slow down and enjoy it. Take it all in. It goes so fast.”
It’s the same sentiment Ferris Bueller captured when he famously said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” That is the foundation of my advice to anyone younger: Presence. You have to learn how to exist in the moment, or you’ll reach the end of the timeline before you realize you were ever on it.
However, in the interest of offering something a bit fresher, I want to pair that stillness with action. This past year, I shared this with my graduating seniors, and it remains my favorite literary quote. It’s from Virgil’s Aeneid: “Fortune favors the bold.”
I’m so moved by those words that I’ve considered getting them tattooed. To me, this is the necessary companion to “slowing down.” Slowing down allows you to see the opportunities; being bold is what allows you to seize them.
Good things happen when you take chances. Sure, things won’t always go your way, but there is nothing worse than the paralysis of “what if?” I’ve made it my mission to eliminate those scenarios from my life. If there is something I want to do, I go for it—even if I’m years late to the party. I would rather fail while chasing the horizon than spend the rest of my life wondering what might have happened if I’d just been brave enough to try.i
If you’re curious about how this ‘Option C’ mindset has looked in practice over the last year, you can read more about that journey here: Taking my Shot
Rebuilding a life takes grit, consistency, and a lot of ‘Option C’ thinking. Having crossed the 1,000-day milestone, I’m now charting the territory beyond. The mission remains the same: No glitz. Just the work. New to the blog? Start your journey here to see the blueprint and the ‘Tricorder’ perspective behind the rebuild.
Thanks for stopping by Rebuilding Rob. Be sure to like 👍, comment and subscribe below. It’s greatly appreciated! Also, feel free to follow me on social media and check out my recent posts!
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- Choosing Happiness: My Alternative Definition of Success
- Making the Day My Own
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The article “The Balance of Stillness and Action: Advice for the Next Generation” first appeared in Rebuilding Rob
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