ending the shoulds featuring Kevin Augsburg

success.

what a freakin’ trip-up word. (and not especially easy to write about, let me tell you. this blog post has gone through countless revisions). is there anything more elusive than this its-entirely-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder notion? i’m convinced it’s our ideas of success, but more so the societal benchmarks of it, that make the Shoulds so evil.

but as much as i want to rail against materialism and achievement's trappings, i won't, because success is also a huge motivator. and what's wrong with wanting better for yourself? also how interesting are we as humans that we'll strive and strive to reach a goal, achieve it, and then almost immediately set the bar higher to achieve something else. it’s pretty amazing, actually.

what I’d like to see go, what causes the anxious racing brain at 4 a.m., the should i want to end, is the manufactured timeframe.

never mind careers in the arts, it’s not realistic to expect that we'll all be at the same place at the same time in our lives. ever. so how ‘bout we ease up on ourselves a bit? the worst that can happen? you die alone, broke, with no family or friends.

I'M KIDDING! no, the worst that can happen is you never become successful.

gasp. i said it. some of us might never get to where our younger selves pictured us. but instead we’ll get to somewhere else. so aim really high and make the ensuing journey, no matter how long it takes you or where you end up, as enjoyable as possible. because regardless of benchmarks and timelines, if you love what you do, with persistence and patience, i firmly believe that all hard work eventually pays off.

now if only there was a way to tell when that day might be. no such luck, right? so why not live like it's tomorrow?

because who knows, it just might be.

* sorry all, i realize the quality of this video can be way better, but when i tried to upload the video in a higher quality format, the text got all wonky. please bear with my graininess. grr.