Does today matter all that much when there’s a tomorrow in the wings?

Yes, no question about it.

Setting aside the fact that tomorrow doesn’t come with a guarantee, what about a more personal take on the idea.

Eleanor Roosevelt summed up the importance perfectly.

“Today is the oldest you’ve ever been, and the youngest you’ll ever be again.”

Probably one of the most important sentences you’ll ever hear.

Don’t forget it — live by it.

Image credit: Wikipedia Commons

There’s a lot of advice these days on the best way to live your life.

And it’s well known that one picture is worth a thousand words.

I came across this by accident and thought it was some of the best advice I’d every seen.

It really would be hard to do better.

I also suggest starting young, instead of waiting.

Your life will be much happier.

Image credit: BK

Do you recall your first kiss? I remember mine vividly. It was scary, exciting and full of passion after we figured out where the lips go.

Why do I bring this up? I bring it up because this is a memory most of us have in common and it can serve as a guidepost for our discussion.

It is week two of the new year and I’ll be honest, the passion is not there.  New beginnings and all that are old hat and it’s back to the daily grind. That sounds depressing as I read that last sentence, so what should I do?

Have you found yourself doing the required tasks but waiting as if something else should be happening, not truly living your life?

I have and I probably will again at some point in the future. I find that it can be easy to slip into complacency and forget what got me here in the first place.

However, I do have thoughts on how to dig yourself out of the doldrums and get back to living!

I’m in sales and as such it’s a roller coaster of emotions on an easy day. To cap that off I am in enterprise sales, so I do not see the fruits of my labor for some time. It can be tough and daunting and I must remind myself daily of my goals.

One way I maintain an even keel is by practicing being grateful for what I have. Remembering that work is not all there is. Keeping in contact with those that love me.

These all sound basic and maybe they are, but we let them slip away too easily.

We don’t remember to be grateful for the blessings and challenges put in our path.

We give up too easily.

We blame others for our misfortune.

These all lead to a life less lived.

As you wake up tomorrow take a moment to remind yourself of how you got to where you are and where you want to be. Push yourself; be uncomfortable.

These all lead to a better self.

Image credit: Per

My readers, my clients and my friends are all pretty driven.

They are goal oriented high achievers; the kind who always see past their current project to the next and the next and the next…

They are fully wired, very social (on and off line) and heavily involved in numerous projects.

They rarely disconnect or step away and are deaf to the sound of silence.

But Sid Caesar, who made the world laugh half a century ago, has some great advice for them—and you.

“Everybody wants to have a goal: I gotta get to that goal, I gotta get to that goal, I gotta get to that goal. Then you get to that goal, and then you gotta get to another goal. But in-between goals is a thing called life that has to be lived and enjoyed — and if you don’t, you’re a fool.”

So don’t be a fool; go after your life with the same tenacity you go after your goals.

Flickr image credit: Jochen Frey

There is an Indian saying that a journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step, but as Anonymous reminds us, “If you don’t start you won’t arrive.”

You will travel further if you follow Alan McGinnis’ advice, “Focus on your potential instead of your limitations.”

Life is a long journey during which it is good to remember the words of Arthur Koestler, “Courage is to never let your actions be influenced by your fears.”

Years ago Dear Abby responded to a reader in her mid thirties who had come into enough money to follow a dream and become a doctor. Friends were discouraging her because by the time she finished her residency she would be in her mid-forties and she asked what Abby thought. I’ve never forgotten the answer; Abby said that while it was true she would be in her forties when she became a doctor in ten years she would be in her forties no matter what she did. A shorter version is offered by George Eliot said, “It is never too late to be what you might have been.”

In that same vein are the inspiring words of Mary Engelbreit, “If your ship hasn’t come in—swim out to it.”

Our lives and who we are reflect our experiences. Most people believe we each have only one life to live, but you can live many lives through books as Charles Scribner reminds us, “Reading is a means of thinking with another person’s mind; it forces you to stretch your own.”

In closing I offer the sage advice of two very different people, one from the world of music and the other from the world of sports.

Ray Charles said, “Don’t go backwards, you’ve already been there,” while Will Foley reminds us, “The world is full of cactus, but you don’t have to sit on them.”

Both are ideas I work hard to adhere to.

Image credit: luke_wes

Did you read the links from yesterday? I hope so, because some of these quotes play off those articles.

“I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, racked with sorrow, but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing.” –Agatha Christie (Good words to remember these days.)

“A woman is like a tea bag, you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.” –Eleanor Roosevelt (This is one of my all-time favorites; it’s stood me in good stead for a long time now.)

“The naked truth is always better than the best-dressed lie.” –Ann Landers (I don’t know where the naked truth is hiding, but the lies were running the banks.)

“Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” –Mother Teresa (True. You don’t know how good a leader is until after the fact, but you should know yourself.)

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” –Sally Berger (So you can keep crying in your beer or get started, get moving and kick butt!)

Your comments—priceless

Don’t miss a post, subscribe via RSS or EMAIL

Image credit: sxc.hu

I love the comics. I’ve followed a lot of good ones over the years, but my hands down all-time favorite is Calvin and Hobbs written by Bill Watterson.Watterson is an interesting guy. He never allowed any commercial products to be made from his strip—no stuffed Hobbs (or I’d have one!), no Calvin dolls, nothing. And he allowed the compilations of his strips only grudgingly. (I own most of them.)

When he decided to stop that was it.

Obviously, he wasn’t driven by money; he didn’t want celebrity. He said what he wanted to say—no more and no less. But what he said will resonate for many years to come.

About education: “Why waste time learning, when ignorance is instantaneous?” (Today’s students have this one down pat.)

About writing: “The purpose of writing is to inflate weak ideas, obscure pure reasoning, and inhibit clarity. With a little practice, writing can be an intimidating and impenetrable fog!” (But with a little more effort it can be just the opposite.)

About business: “To make a business decision, you don’t need much philosophy; all you need is greed, and maybe a little knowledge of how the game works.” (An awful lot of CEOs seem to have taken this attitude to heart.)

About living: “There is not enough time to do all the nothing we want to do.” (True, but I’m trying—are you?)

Your comments—priceless

Don’t miss a post, subscribe via RSS or EMAIL

Image credit: Just-Us-3 on flickr