#475 Lukewarm dreams freeze to death

Living a balanced life doesn’t mean living average experiences.

It’s more like a barbell, or a seesaw, where you go all in on complementary actions.

Work hard, rest hard.

Write with total focus, then fully let go when you’ve hit your word target.

Work out with full intensity, then let your body fully recover.

So when you’re out of balance, the solution is not to come closer to the middle.

Instead, you start doing less of what you’re already doing or add more of the polar opposite of what you’re already doing.

Figure out your polar opposite pairs, and give them both the attention they deserve. That’s how you dance the barbell balance of life.

Intentional living is about reminding yourself of what’s most important to you.

Reminding yourself that you can choose to be a writer, a runner, a musician, an artist, or a bon vivant.

Reminding yourself that you can choose to be kind to others.

Reminding yourself that you have a choice to act differently.

Reminding yourself that the past does not equal the future.

Reminding yourself that this, too, shall pass.

Reminding yourself that at any given moment, whatever reminder you need the most, you likely won’t think of yourself.

Reminding yourself that for this reason, it’s OK to get help and let someone else remind you with short daily notes.

And me, reminding myself that the act of writing daily reminders for you is the reminder I need to remember that I do, in fact, choose to be consistent, and I choose to be a writer.

Reminders upon reminders upon reminders that we will constantly get distracted, and we will always have the choice to come back to what truly matters.