Why memes are easier than dreams
We live amidst a whirlwind of choice. TV shows, websites, food, careers, dating apps, dates on those apps, and what pet projects we’d like to work on.
We’ve always wanted options but, as we know all too well, with great choice comes great uncertainty. All that opportunity and indecision keep our engines revving in neutral.
High hopes and loud plans without a stitch of progress whatsoever.
In the mid-19th century, Søren Kierkegaard wrote about how you can’t have freedom or potential without anxiety and uncertainty. He called it “the alarming possibility of being able.” Isn’t that beautiful?
The mindfulness coach George Mumford calls this phenomenon, “The dizziness of freedom.” We don’t want to be enslaved, for sure, but we also don’t enjoy the expanse of “the world is my oyster” either.
To choose one thing means that we turn down two or three others. We feel loss before we’ve even gone anywhere.
“If only I could pick the right thing,” we say, “then I’d start.” Unfortunately, this M.C. Escher approach to regret avoidance has us climbing a stairway to right where we've always been.
Freedom isn’t free. When it comes to our personal pursuits the cost is discomfort. There’s no way around it. “Your experiences in life,” Brene Brown quipped, “cannot exceed your willingness to be vulnerable.”
And that’s the other side of this sh!t sandwich of paralysis and indecision. If we have one boot spinning in a pile of choice, our other foot is laid up on the ottoman of comfort.
Feeling good feels so good! For a large majority of us, we can live a decently comfortable life without much dirt under our nails. Why choose something difficult and unpredictable when you can just envelop yourself in the cradle of Netflix, DoorDash, and a scrolling thumb?
Comfort has become the new opiate of the masses.
Memes are easier dreams.
And yet, here you are with that itch to do something new, or finish something old. Escapes and excuses can fog up your bathroom mirror for a time, but your desires always find a way to smear an opening on the glass and stare you right in the face.
We say. “I’ve just been really busy. I’m going to get to it tomorrow. I promise.” And the cycle continues. I can tell you that we certainly have tomorrow, but we don’t have forever.
From businesses to projects, from travel to work, I’ve been able to live a life of intention and follow through. On top of that, I’ve coached hundreds of people who were trying to turn their hopes into dreams, or who were just looking to get back a little control in their lives.
But I know it't not easy, that's why I'm throwing a free webinar - Getting It Done: 5 Of The Biggest Mistakes People Make When Trying To Finish
Join me and learn about the bear traps of creativity that can derail us at any moment.
After all, before we can "do," we have to avoid the "don't."
