Quote-A-Day: Day 287

If you spend all your time worrying about succeeding, you'll miss all your time enjoying living. #QuoteADay #Day287 #edchat #edu #LiveFirst

As a species, we have a drive to be successful.

This drive looks different to different people, but the idea is the same:

Leave a mark on the world, a mark that highlights who we are and what we did.

Yet, interestingly, if we spend all our time worrying about being successful, and being concerned with what we did in our short time on this planet, then we miss out on what life is really about.

Living.

Much of what we do has nothing to do with being successful.  It has to do with being human, and sucking up every last drop of life we can.  When we focus too deeply on one goal (success in work, let's say), then we put blinders on to all the great things that are going on in our lives outside of that realm.

That isn't to say we should reduce our drive.

But, we must make sure that we shift the gear into neutral long enough to slow down, and enjoy the scenery.

Speeding through life might get you "success," but it will also make you forget (or ignore) all the additional inputs into the system of life.

And for leaders and learners, that is a horrible thing.

Success must always be on our radar.  But we can become better, we can become "more," just by considering life and responding to it (all potential success aside).

After all, why bother succeeding, if you don't have the frame of reference (or don't remember it) to consider where your life began and where you hope for it to go?