Drive your own bus…
Imagine a scene where you are standing on the street corner, and you notice the car turning the corner doesn’t have a driver.
Or another, where you notice that every time you meet someone, they are riding with someone else. Both are odd if not alarming but I am always amazed to learn how many people have just given up taking the driver’s seat of their own bus.
Sometimes it is because they are too busy, they are confused and just want someone else to figure it out or worst yet they just want to give up on life. Whatever the reason, it is a tragedy. Every day they are giving up on optimizing their own potential.
Each of us has the opportunity to DECIDE how we want to spend our life. It requires our attention, our focus and hard work to stay engaged.
To make this happen – you must be intentional.
Leaving the driving to someone else is not a recipe to optimize individual potential but rather a formula to be less than fully accountable…
After all, if you did not decide to go there, you just tagged along for the ride, so the consequences are not yours but someone else’s. It is a sure way to live the life someone else envisioned for you vs. the one you were born to live.
Life is too precious to leave to chance. We each get the same 24 hours a day, every day, over the course of our years on earth to optimize our opportunities. Riding a tour bus driven by someone else is not a recipe to maximize your experience or impact on the world. So why then do we let it happen?
Have you seen the same thing? How do you manage to stay driving your own bus?
“Experience everything while your in college.” I hear this phase all day. As I eat with family, listen to the radio, or sit in classrooms. Many people understand what it means, but few have the courage to fully embrace it.
I don’t lead the most exciting life. Indeed, I often struggle to expand my view points or take in new experiences.
Recently I have began to push myself out of my comfort zone more and more. This change started on a flight to Mexico. I was reading an article on how to enjoy yourself while on vacation. The article was full of generic advice that I won’t outline here, but what struck a cord with me was a small sentence, “when faced with two options, always pick the one that scares you a little.” That one sentence has influenced my life more than most books I have read.
To stay in the “driver’s seat” I push myself past what I am comfortable with. Everyday we are given choices. Most of these choices are small and will not affect much, but taken together over the course of a life they add up to more than we can imagine. The best way to stay in the “driver’s seat” is to question everything, make bold decisions, and don’t be afraid to try something new.
I’m not saying routine is bad. What I am saying is that is is very easy to become apathetic. To succeed you must be willing to fail.
Well said Jorge. Here’s to your journey ahead, I know it will be worth it!