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Rule #25. Life isn’t a yes or no question, and you are not binary.
This week’s rule digs into the crux of Intrepid Daily. The whole idea of this blog has been founded on the notion that we always have choices, options, and possibilities. Some of them won’t work out, and those setbacks have the potential to make us feel as though we should throw in the towel. That’s exactly what we shouldn’t do. I believe, wholeheartedly, that there is a world of possibility between sitting on your couch and climbing Everest, and just because you aren’t able to ascend the world’s tallest peak doesn’t mean you have to do nothing. This is at the heart of everything I write about here, but I get it. I understand. Sometimes when you see that goal way off in the distance and you know just how far away it is, it becomes easy to say, “I’ll never reach that, so what’s the point of even trying.” When you start to feel that despair creeping in, remember that life isn’t a yes of no question, and you are not binary.
Like most people, I have moments where I get upset because it takes so long for my plans to come to fruition. I feel like I expend a lot of effort only to be stymied at times. Broken hands, unforeseen expenses, unexpected sickness, sometimes it seems like I’ll never get around to the big adventures I’m planning. When I get to thinking like that, I have to remind myself that those grand plans will happen someday, but until they do, there are a lot of other things that I can do. Just because I can’t do the things I want to do right now, doesn’t mean I can’t do something else. There are always options. We have choices. Our lives aren’t true or false, yes or no. If you can’t do one thing right now, do something else until you can.
There are always options. We always have choices. Several times you’ll find yourself at a fork in the road, but there are more than just two tines. Giving up, ordering countless pizzas, and binge watching shows on Netflix is always one of those options. There’s nothing wrong with doing that every so often, but is that all you want? Climbing Everest and sitting on the couch are two possibilities, but they’re not the only two possibilities. So if you’re not ready for Everest, don’t resign yourself to sitting on the couch doing nothing.
You’re not binary, and life isn’t a yes or no question. Just because you can’t do one thing, doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do. Start small, try something new, work on developing your skills, or work on a new plan. Don’t choose to quit. Choose to stay intrepid, to keep going. Stick with it and your time will come.
“Rules for Intrepid Living” is an ongoing weekly article that gives potential guidelines for how we can all live a bit more of an intrepid life.