Sustainable Excellence Xtras #81 - The Twin Thieves of Fear and Regret With Robert Hastings

How will you know when you are successful? How will you know when you have arrived? How will you know when you've made it?

Is there a certain destination, or date, or event that lets you know your goals have been achieved and you've made it to the top of the mountain?

Kara Lawson, the women's basketball coach at Duke University has a great talk that she gives to her team about when life will get easier. ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDzfZOfNki4) The meaning of the talk is that life never gets easier, you just handle hard better.  

The same is true of success. Success isn't an objective, it's the relentless pursuit of your purpose in life. It's not the destination, it's the journey. And that is what so many people fail to understand.

We seem to think that when we reach certain milestones in our life that somehow our outlook will change. That we will magically become happier, more resilient, or more confident. That we will be smarter, richer, or more secure.

The destination will always outdistance us. There will always be more work to do, more assignments to complete, more knowledge to learn.

Stop stressing about when you will "become" successful. Spend more time focusing on the here and now, on the learning you are doing, the relationships you are building, and the love you are giving.  

Don't allow fear and regret rob you of the present by focusing your attention on the past and the future. Live in the now because your being cannot have any impact on the past and the future is not guaranteed.

Watch the short video below from an essay written by Robert Hastings that illustrates the importance of living for today. 

Also, please leave me a comment about your thoughts regarding the importance of living in the present.