Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
— Guy Kawasaki
There’s a Carly Simon song — which will forever remind me of those old Heinz ketchup commercials (well done, Heinz marketing team) — that keeps running through my mind this morning.
The song is called “Anticipation” and it aptly describes how I feel right now. There are so many things I want to do, so many things I want to accomplish… yet, only so much time in the day. I’m reminded of Arnold Schwarzenegger, who tells those who claim to need eight hours of sleep, i.e. people like me, to “sleep faster.”
Indeed. There’s no denying the wisdom of these words. I’ve often wondered how much I could accomplish if only I didn’t have to sleep.
So, I’m trying to get up earlier. Yesterday, I crawled out of bed at 4 a.m. and, today, I was up at seven. Obviously, I’d like my wake-up time to be consistent, but I’ll roll with this for a while, because my gym visits are often later at night and I do want to give myself ample recovery time.
Speaking of the gym — it was packed last night. And I couldn’t help but wonder what it will look like in a few weeks, a few months. Many regulars lament this time of year, because, in addition to the multitude of people, there are a number of newbies, who invariably clog the works as they struggle to figure out what such-and-such machine does.
I don’t think that way. Frankly, I hope all the newbies stay. To me, the gym is a microcosm of life and I don’t want to see anybody give up on their dreams.
I did and I know the toll it extracts.
Vince Lombardi said, “Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.”
I agree. Too often, people rely on motivation to help them accomplish their goals. But motivation is, as David Goggins points out, merely “kindling”. It is capable of lighting a fire — not of sustaining one. And going to the gym is the perfect example of this.
It’s fun — even exciting — when one is transforming their body and the weight is falling off. It’s not so exhilarating when the aches and pains start kicking in, when one is tired, or after a long day. Yet, I believe it’s during those times that the most progress is made, because one is reconditioning their mind along with their body.
Having said that, I need to get to work; damn you, Carly Simon.
DerekDSimon.com 