Being present is getting old...
Aloha from Bali,
You've probably heard it countless times: "Be present. Be here now."
But if you truly live only in the present, you will suffer perpetually. Why, you ask? Well, that's precisely what we're unpacking in this newsletter.
As we step into this new month, I’ve noticed a pervasive trend...
Many aspire to fitness, yet few set foot in the gym. 💪
Many dream of entrepreneurship, yet few lay the foundation of their business. 💰
Many contemplate quitting their job, yet few submit their resignation. 💌
Many yearn to travel, yet few purchase the ticket. ✈️
Many desire the fruit, yet few tend to the tree. 🌴
It's a simple equation, a law of nature: what we focus on expands. Where attention flows, energy follows. While being present is vital for a harmonious life and a regulated nervous system, prioritizing our future self in today's decisions is essential for crafting a life filled with meaning, abundance, and autonomy.
🤕 Lessons Learned the Hard Way
When I launched my first real company in 2015, it began with promise—partnerships with the UN, NGOs, universities, transforming lives. Yet, it fizzled out as I shifted focus to travel and exploration, choosing the freelancer's path for its immediate freedoms. Reflecting back, I recognize that true growth—like that of a fruit tree—requires consistent nurturing over years.
Take my relationship with Cam as another example. Eight months in, our first major conflict nearly ended things. It was an easy out, mirroring past responses to conflict. Instead, enduring that discomfort has brought us to getting married in a month (super stoked), a testament to the value of patience and consistency.
📱 The Downward Spiral of Instant Gratification
Today's world relentlessly seeks instant gratification—quick fixes, get-rich-quick schemes, endless scrolling through digital snippets, convenience delivered to our doorsteps. This endless pursuit often leads to a vicious cycle of dissatisfaction and shifting focus, diluting our patience and fortitude.
We live in an age where expectations and capabilities are escalating, pushing us towards greater convenience but also greater fragility in facing life's challenges. Being a founder, or pursuing any significant long-term goal, is inherently inconvenient. It demands resilience, sacrifice, and a retraining of our brains to perceive failure as a stepping stone rather than a setback.
🥝 The Key to a Healthy, Abundant Future
So, how do we escape this cycle of immediate gratification and start building a future that honors our deepest aspirations? The answer is discipline.
Discipline begins by aligning our actions with our intentions, a simple yet profoundly challenging endeavor. Once practiced regularly, this alignment fosters a sense of invincibility—a true superpower.
In our next edition, I'll delve deeper into specific practices and actions that can help us all prioritize our future selves through our present decisions. This is about reclaiming our autonomy and retraining ourselves to be sovereign, not slaves to immediacy.
See you in the next one.
Aho,
Elijah 🌴
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