Is My Greatest Fear The Same As Yours?

What will you look back at and regret? Will you look back at the things you could control or the things you couldn’t control?

I know my answer right off the bat. I can tell you that my greatest fear is looking back on a life that I didn’t take action on the things I could control. I mean, who cares about the things we can’t control? Why dwell on things that you can’t do anything about? Sometimes, I think we use focusing on what we can’t control as a scapegoat, so that we can just ignore it. So we end up not taking action because it’s easier to remain the same person, even if we’re unhappy with who we are.

Oftentimes what we find scary is taking action on what we CAN control because there’s risk there. We’re not sure how it’s going to turn out. We’re afraid that if we put effort in and fail, it hurts and we don’t like that pain. So instead, we disregard it. We put it off for another day.

What are you ignoring and putting off for another day?

Have you ever thought of your life not in days, but in seconds? That’s right, seconds. When we think of our life in seconds, it allows us to live in the present. When we’re in the present, we don’t dwell on the past and we don’t fear the future. You see, with each breath we take, with each second that passes, we are creating our tomorrow, breath by breath, second by second.

When you dwell on the past, on what cannot be changed, it strips your time of being in the present.

Each day we are given a “time bank account” of 86,400 seconds. No more, no less. Unlike a money bank account, we can’t put back what we lost, dwindled, or spent unwisely. Rather, we can choose to spend our 86,400 seconds however we choose, but once they’re gone for the day, they can’t be taken back.

There’s a saying, “Each day is a gift.” Today, imagine each second as a gift and each breath as a gift. Your body, however able it is, is a gift. Your heart involuntarily pumps blood through your entire being each day while you work and each night while you sleep. When you think about it that way, it really is humbling.

So, spend your time wisely. Money comes and goes, but when time is gone, it’s lost forever and cannot be bought back.

If you have squandered time through distraction or because you don’t want to face the music when it comes to your health and well-being, be gentle with yourself. Don’t beat yourself up about it. We women are great at punishing ourselves, but compassion is where we often lack. Remember that self-compassion is a practice, not a perfect. Today, love yourself enough to take action on what you can control. Leave past failures where they belong and just bring with you today the lessons learned from them.

My mentor says that there is no perfect time, but there’s a right time for everything. Maybe you need to pick yourself up, brush yourself off, and start again today. Take control of what you can control. Use some of your precious 86,400 seconds to improve your body and your health. Your time is priceless. Don’t squander another second.

Commit to taking one action step toward improving your health today. Why not start here.

Your health and wellness coach in your 50′s,

Kim