I want to share a secret that many of you may not be aware of. It’s the secret to making life really easy.
Avoid commitment.That’s it. It doesn’t matter what it is, commitment means personal responsibility. And, personal responsibility is hard.
Commitment induces a chance of failure, it elicits vulnerability, and it’s very uncomfortable. So, to avoid difficultly in your life, my advice would be to avoid personal responsibility at every turn.
Don’t commit to yourself. Don’t commit to others. Don’t commit to your intellectual pursuits. Of course, you shouldn’t commit to your physical development either. And, life will be easy, simple, and devoid of complications. Period.
Without a single commitment or responsibility, one really can’t fail or be held to account for their actions.
Now, after contemplating everything I just said, perhaps to start asking is, “Is that a worthy goal?” I think we’d all start to come around to realize that living an easy life (though it could be nice) isn’t really the goal. And, sure.. failure sucks, but is NOT failing the goal, either?
I truly meant what I said earlier. Not committing is the easiest decision one can make. But, I also mean it when I say everything worth living for is in true commitments and takes personal responsibility.
The failure, the honor, the integrity, the pursuit… it’s where the magic is.
Don’t believe me? Look someone in the eyes and promise them something. Commit. And, watch your behavior change. Your motivation automatically goes to another level.
Statements like, “Honey, I promise I will be home at 5PM” start to have an affect on your decisions at 3PM, for example. You’ve got to get the job done. Sure, sometimes there’s traffic and you get home at 5:15, but the pursuit was different than it would have been.
The upcoming meet, competition, or exam is a microcosm of this concept, as well. “I’m going to get stronger” or “I am going to school” turns into a whole new animal when your money and your reputation are on the line.
And, I think we all could imagine what the Olympics would look like without commitment: “Ten seconds on the clock, 50m to go, Usain Bolt is on the final stretch.. And, he’s… walking off the field?”
Instead, Usain Bolt is committed to himself and the team, and he’s got to walk into the fire and earn glory or face failure.
A common example of this is the nomadic fitness fanatic.
So, you’ve taken two yoga classes ,tried three weightlifting coaches, switched CrossFit boxes four times, jumped across five online coaching programs, and you’ve run bleachers a bunch of times this month. Brilliant. When are you going to commit to something? Anything?
Inject your life with some next level relationships, fitness, career developments, etc. Pour your heart out and practice unwavering personal responsibility.
Because, until you do so, your efforts are just amateur by comparison.
Grow up and commit.
Josh Wilson
@joshuadvik