Ones and zeroes
“If we listened to our intellect, we’d never have a love affair. We’d never have a friendship. We’d never go into business, because we’d be cynical. Well, that’s nonsense. You’ve got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down.”
– Ray Bradbury
This one goes out to you, Ray.
.
.
.
Quick rewind, I had originally planned to open up this post with this:
…
If you love someone, let them go. If they love you, they’ll come back.
…
I’m sure you’ve heard that line, or some variation of it, plenty of times before. What can I say… I agree with it, and I also kinda hate it.
I take it as a truthful (though sometimes harsh) reminder that ultimately, while we may hope or encourage or influence, we can’t control how others feel. This fills my heart and breaks my heart for various reasons.
Anyone else feel like they’re in a constant state of deciding on their next “move”? I try to go by what feels right, but sometimes I get stuck in no man’s land, between opening the next door, and closing the door behind me. Better yet, throwing away the key to that door I just closed behind me.
To quote Ray once again:
“Learning to let go should be learned before learning to get.
Life should be touched, not strangled.
You’ve got to relax,
let it happen at times, and at others,
move forward with it.”
I say this because I want to draw a distinction between evaluating a decision, and actually making a decision.
Making a decision is the easy part. Everything before, not so easy.
With that being said, if to a large enough extent you don’t “feel” right moving in the direction of a next move, then maybe that’s actually a blessing. Maybe fate is whispering a hint… Are you listening? Time to pivot and change direction.
.
.
.
For as much as I would like to explain/justify/expand on [insert anything/everything here], most of the time it’s just not productive. You read my last post – I want cutting to the core more!
AKA THINK LESS, DO MORE.
(AKA CUT THE CRAP.)
The best way I know how to accomplish that, is by minimizing the urge to analyze things I have no control over.
And here we are (finally) at the topic of this post: ones and zeros.
One = HELL YES.
Zero = No.
Maybe and lukewarm don’t exist here. “I’ll try” is irrelevant. One means you executed. Zero means you didn’t. Totally on you whether you care enough to go again. Hold on, is that an excuse I hear? In the words of my 19-month-old nephew yelling out his favorite word, “No, no, no!” If you have to explain yourself, it’s a zero. You either jumped off the cliff (one), or you didn’t (zero).
Talk about a productive way to approach life!
Quick detour to how I plan each post for the blog….. I don’t. The whole let-it-evolve-organically approach works. I find excitement and inspiration from so many different places. I trust that at some point, I’ll start to identify overlapping themes. Eventually – and this always happens – I’ll find so much overlap that I get overwhelmed. At that point the only way out is to write. A post is submitted. Catharsis, commence! The cycle repeats.
Inspiration for this post has been no different. For this go-around, the greatest recurring theme has been owning what you love. This has come through from the following sources:
– The commitment to a more PROACTIVE vs. reactive life. (“84 Hacks, Systems, and Gifts to Massively Improve Your Life” from The Truth Barrel podcast). Including this quote from Gabby Reece (who is totally one of my heroes if you haven’t realized that by now) on embracing your passion:
“We as individual people have to have the confidence to believe that if we follow our hearts, and what we know is our voice – what we’re good at, our skill set – and we commit to that… that really that’s the thing to worry most about. And, we’ll navigate all the other stuff that comes and goes… So, what are you building in your real life… that is real, that does exist? Because, that’s all we have.”
– One-liners for days from the late Ray Bradbury. I’m teaching a unit on his short story the “The Veldt” to 9th graders now, and have so thoroughly enjoyed seeing how much they admire him. One of the biggest pieces of advice that he always pitched was to TAKE RISKS. To JUMP, so that you “will find out how to unfold your wings as you fall.” Fun fact, I first saw that quote two years ago and loved it so much I wrote it down right away and taped it to my desktop. It wasn’t until yesterday that I made the connection, proceeded to freak out and tell my sister, and swear by fate once again.
And now to end, two more quotes I really enjoy from Ray Bradbury:
“Love what you do, and do what you love. Don’t listen to anyone else who tells you not to do it. You do what you want, what you love.”
-
“Your intuition knows what to write, so get out of the way.”
Cheers to following your heart, jumping off cliffs and building your wings, in whatever it is you’re pursuing. <3