Life begins today

Try to keep your soul young and quivering right up to old age, and to imagine right up to the brink of death that life is only beginning. I think that is the only way to keep adding to one's talent, and one's inner happiness.

--George Sand

I love this quote. So often, I see people who have gotten to a point in their careers where they feel like they're too old to do something different. Even though they feel like they're on the wrong path, they have resigned themselves to work that slowly and steadily drains the life out of them.

To them I say, "Life begins today!" However much time you have left in your career, whether it's five years or fifty years, it's far too long to spend it unhappily. Forget the past. That - to use an economics term - is a sunk cost. It's gone and there's nothing you can do about it. Your past is relevant because it has brought you to where you are today, but don't use it to limit your future.

I think this applies to all of us, regardless of where we are in our lives. It can be helpful to stop and step back, looking at our world with fresh eyes. "Let's say today really is a completely new beginning," we might ask ourselves. "What do I want to create from here?"

It's so easy to get stuck in a rut. Our routines and habits and the "reality" we've become accustomed to have a way of building walls along our path that prevent us from seeing the possibilities out beyond our immediate line of sight. Even if the path we've been on has been a good one, there is the potential for it to go stale if we don't stop to get the full picture every once in a while.

Stop for a minute and ask yourself, "If life is beginning today, what do I want to create?" Then get busy.

--

Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst (sm)

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Comments

[David Finch]

Curt, I really appreciate this post today! This is exactly what I told myself yesterday! Just hearing these words out of my mouth brought new found energy and inner peace.

Thanks!

[Hiren Shah]

While I agree that one should not limit oneself by one's past, the sooner one finds one's vocation in life the better. Many successful people have commented that they were lucky enough to find their vocations early in life. Later with family responsibilites it may not be impossible but is difficult. The early bird catches the worm as they say. Better late than never does not apply here in my view.

[Curt Rosengren]

Hiren, you're definitely right that the earlier you find the career that lights you up, the easier it is.

At the same time, I can't agree that better late than never doesn't apply. If you are at a later stage in life there's no going back to the early bird stage. The reality is, we have no choice but to start where we are and move forward. Late will always be better than never when it comes to happiness.

[Hiren Shah]

I agree with you curt when you say that you have to start from where you are. However since work forms most of our waking hours the earlier the better.Not only you other career experts claim that career transition is a time consuming and difficult thing. Better late than never here is somewhat deceptive.

I read an article in Reader's Digest "Do you need a Career Doctor" in which it stated that in the US they were trying to do this in high school which I feel is the right time to start- Prevention is better than cure as they say.
Yesterday I got this intereting link from someone which I would like to share. It is from the former CEO of apple computers, Steve Jobs on "You have got to find what you love." It is there in my URL

[Curt Rosengren]

Hiren, I think we're on the same wavelength but talking about slightly different things. Perhaps it is a question of who your audience is.

If you're talking to young people, then yes! Stress the fact that they should start thinking about what really makes them feel alive. It's so much easier to start early.

If you're talking to a 45 year old who already has 20+ years of their career under their belt, stressing the importance of starting early is a moot point.

It's so easy for people to get caught up in the fact that they should have started younger, and to focus on the fact that mid-life career change can be challenging, and feeling like it's too late to make a change.

My point is, unless you're dead, it's never too late.