If you had one day left
/Recently I was asked by 2 different people what would I do differently if I had only 1 day left to live. So many things people can choose to do, would I:
- Travel somewhere I've never been?
- Would I tick off that bucket list that had been sitting around for years?
- Would I spend every cent I had?
- Would I give everything I had to charity?
There are so many ways this question can be answered, but I take this question as a more holistic and all encompassing question.
So what would I do if I had one day left?
My answer to both people was "I would do exactly what I do every other day."
"What? You wouldn't change anything?" I hear you say.
Probably not to be honest. I'll admit, my life is far from glamorous. I don't earn shit-loads of cash, I don't live in a mansion and drive a fancy car - these things are far from what's important to me though.
My life however, and how I live it is exactly the life that I have chosen and that fulfils me. I don't post about all the work that I do, but besides my role that "pays the bills" I do a tonne of voluntary work. In terms of hours, it's probably more than what my paying role is worth.
I often have friends ask me "Oh do you get paid to mentor those school kids", "You must be paid something to be on that charity board" or "you must be earning good money from all those speaking gigs".
Sometimes I can earn some money, but the voluntary work (which is the majority) is exactly that. So why do I do so much of it? I have a full time role, a family, 2 mortgages - why would I exhaust myself doing all this stuff for free?
Here is the million dollar answer: BECAUSE I LOVE IT.
If you're not doing something because you love it, then why are you doing it at all? Yes, I have a role that pays my bills and I love it. I've taken a pay cut which has pushed me back 10 years in terms of my earning capacity, why? BECAUSE I LOVE IT. I love what I do.
Is everyday amazing, bursting with positivity and running on rose petals? Heck no! But I remind myself that this is the path I chose and that I can easily choose another path if I wanted to.
Like Captain Planet said "The power is yours"!