You went to sleep last night and woke up this morning.
Congratulations. You’ve been given a gift, one that almost everyone reading this takes for granted. One more opportunity to hug your kids and kiss your spouse. One more opportunity to reach out to someone you care about and check-in. One more opportunity to do something bold or start something. One more opportunity to challenge yourself and get uncomfortable.
Remember, today was NEVER guaranteed. You took it for granted last night when you went to sleep. You assumed you’d wake up today and have another chance to do all those things you said you’d do tomorrow.
You’d spend time with your kids… tomorrow.
You’d date your spouse… tomorrow.
You’d call your mom… tomorrow.
You’d start that business… tomorrow.
You’d try that new thing that scares the crap out of you… tomorrow.
You’d tell your kids you’re proud of them… tomorrow.
You’d tell your spouse you love them… tomorrow.
You’d step out of your comfort zone… tomorrow.
You’d start going to the gym… tomorrow.
You’d tell someone you’re sorry… tomorrow.
There is a high likelihood that tomorrow will come. The odds are in your favor. But what if it doesn’t?
The day I married Cristina, in the middle of the day’s chaos, I spent just a few minutes talking to one of my best friends during the reception. Like any groom, I was being pulled in a hundred directions at once, and my time with this friend was far too brief. I hadn’t slowed down in months, and we hadn’t caught up in way too long. As I got pulled away from our conversation, I recall telling him, “Let’s catch up next week.”
A few days later, he was dead.
How many things will you regret if you don’t get your tomorrow… or if it doesn’t come for someone you care about? How many missed opportunities will you look back on? How many chances will you have had to do something, try something, or be something that you missed? How many times will you see in your rear-view mirror where you played it safe and didn’t take that risk? How many “what-if’s” will you carry with you?
Too many times, we battle the tyranny of the urgent. There’s always something in our lives trying to keep our attention from what’s truly important. I want to be a great husband who loves his wife passionately and a dad who trains his kids well. I want to be a good son to my mom. I want to be a rock that other men can count on when they need someone in their circle. In the middle of that, every day is spent fighting off the things that are trying to hijack my attention – the things that make me say, “I’ll do it tomorrow.”
Here’s my line in the sand. No more letting the most important things slide into tomorrow. No more procrastinating, hesitating, or postponing life. I’m going to do it today.
The Takeaway
We get no guarantees in this life, least of all that we’re going to wake up tomorrow. All we have is this moment we’re in right now… so do something with it. Erase “I’ll do it tomorrow” from your vocabulary. Do it today, even if it’s just one small action at a time that helps you grow and make progress in the areas that matter.
Here’s to making today count, and not letting things slide into tomorrow. Subscribe here and I’ll help keep you accountable to making the most of the time you get, the relationships you have, and the opportunities in front of you. – John