A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do.” – Bob Dylan
This simple, but surprisingly interesting question was posted in our Art of Self Design community a few days ago:
“What do I do if every day feels the same?”
And of course, the obvious answer is:
“Do something different.”
But here’s the less-obvious answer:
“Make sure you really, really like that day.”
Truth be told, I actually prefer most of my days to be the same.
I’ve spent years optimizing my life around the few things I love doing:
Internal practice, creative work, training, learning, eating good food, watching good shows / movies, and hanging out with good people.
More often than not, I want to do the same thing, in the same order, every day.
Even now, sitting here in the Costa Rica rainforest, facilitating a two-week plant medicine retreat with some of my favorite people in the world…
…Part of me can’t wait to return to cold, snowy Canada and sink back into my daily routine.
So if you don’t like the fact that every day feels the same:
1. Redesign your days so you actually like them
2. Add more free-flowing days to satisfy your craving for variety (I usually like ~2 per week, but your taste may vary)
3. If responsibilities pull you into daily activities you don’t enjoy (school, job, etc), optimize the way you approach those activities to make them more enjoyable.
(there is always a way — read Man’s Search For Meaning for more on this)
And, if those responsibilities continue dragging down your enjoyment of daily life, just remember:
It’s your choice to keep holding yourself to those responsibilities.
Creative control is in your hands, and nobody is going to change your situation until you do.
Of course, change usually doesn’t happen instantly.
Most of us go through a few years of grinding before we land in a life we deeply love.
Just keep moving in the direction of doing more of what you love, and less of what you don’t, and before long you’ll look at your life and realize:
I want every day to be like this.
It’s a beautiful thing.
– T
P.S. Our most recent YouTube clip reveals a much deeper layer of the life-creation game:
The Universe Speaks The Language Of Energy
(pay close attention to the point made at 9m 30s)
