This is the speech I wrote a few weeks back for my weekly Toastmasters meeting. Something about the transience of life got to me and I felt compelled to write about it. Enjoy!
The average life span of an American male is around 74 years and for a female, it’s 79. According to a German survey conducted in 2005, the average person living approximately 79 years spends one third of their life or approximately 26 years sleeping, 6 months on the toilet, 2 years going to school, 7 years working, 5 years doing housework, 5 years eating and drinking and 5-10 years on the TV and Computer. Unbelievable huh? If you feel the need to get up out of your chair and bolt out of the room to go and do something, I won’t hold it against you. Life really is too short.
Or is it? Perhaps what’s keeping you in your chair isn’t the realization that life is too short, but rather the tougher question of, what should I do with my short time? A lot of people that I ask this question to say they don’t know. My belief is that most of us already know what it is that they should be doing, usually it’s that thing that you spend most of your time wishing or dreaming about, perhaps writing or talking about with your friends. It may not be fully formed yet, but there’s an inkling of what it is. The problem isn’t a problem of knowing, but a problem of doing.
Why don’t we do the things we know we should do
Reason #1: Fear
Reason #2: Fear
Reason #3: Fear
Notice a pattern? Yep it’s all fear… fear of rejection, disappointment, uncertainty, inability…
I spent two years in college and four years of my high school career thinking I’d be an engineer or scientist. I somehow convinced myself that I wanted to be an inventor, an engineer, a rocket scientist, something that used all the math and science that I thought I enjoyed. My fear was so powerful that it convinced me of a false truth. I had dreams of winning the noble prize (I kid you not) in subject areas that I now realize I have absolutely no interest in. I was so afraid of being financially insecure and having my father disown me, which he did anyway for a short time, that I resigned myself to a fate that, in a perfect world, I would have written jokes about.
So being the wise soon to be 24 year old that I am. My strategy against fear is made up of two letters: d-o. Living life like there ain’t no tomorrow is all about doing. It’s about blasting through the internalized fears and taking a leap of faith towards a direction that suits our personalities, interests and desires.
If that means asking that special someone out who you’re too afraid of being rejected by, do it. Maybe it means making up with some old friend or family member over something stupid that happened long ago but that you can’t seem to get over. Or perhaps it’s finally doing the thing you always wanted to do as a kid, but never thought possible. Jump out of an airplane with a parachute? Sure why not? Get in touch with your inner kid and take a Ferris Buler Day Off. Whatever it is, follow Nike’s advice and Just Do It. If you’re looking for a New Years Resolution to commit to, try this one.
If you’re like me and are prone to think yourself into inaction, my advice is, don’t think, just do. Fear is, by definition irrational. It is an emotional response or stimulus to a situation that is perceived to be potentially dangerous. We don’t overcome our fears by thinking, but by facing them head on and taking no prisoners.
For me Just Doing It involved letting go of an interesting job as a reporter and other potentially lucrative job opportunities to sit at home and write screenplays. It’s not glamorous, I assure you, but it’s a step towards my dream of making movies. I spent two years thinking about it, dabbling in it, and then finally I got tired of just talking about it that I decided to do something drastic. Not every step needs to be drastic, but it does need to provide a tangible change of direction towards your intended course. The most important thing is making a committed and concerted step forward.
If you think about how much time we spend doing the everyday tasks of eating, drinking and sleeping, life is a lot shorter than it seems. Why spend it dreaming and wishing when you can be doing instead?
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