Month: September 2021

Right when we hear the alarm go off in the morning, we want to hit the snooze button and get more sleep. But we know we shouldn’t. We know we should wake up and hit the off button instead.

If we hit the snooze button, the alarm will go off again anyway. That few minutes of extra sleep is never enough. An hour or two more would be sufficient.

One way to wake up early–even before the alarm goes off–is to sleep early the night before and get plenty of sleep. If we feel like we need more sleep, it’s an uphill battle to wake up in the morning.

We’ll hit that snooze button until we’ve got barely enough time to get ready and go to work. And in that moment of panic, do we jump out of bed like we’re fully awake.

At the end of an arduous journey or project, we look forward to a reward. Something that acknowledges the effort and challenges we overcame to reach the end of the road.

But often times, the reward is short lived. Whether it’s a prize, or the satisfaction of seeing a finished work, the feeling of gratification and of a job-well-done will soon fade. Sooner or later, we want to start something new, and face new challenges that will push us to our limits. We need it despite the difficulties we went through–even when we said we wouldn’t do it again.

A reward will feel great in the moment, but one reward is hardly ever enough. Even after a break, we feel compelled to start something new, try something different. And in the end, it’s not really about the reward, but about the process of ever-changing growth and discovery that we take on new goals.

Time is something that our life revolves around. The clocks that we used to glance at on our wristwatch have been replaced by the clocks on our cellphones and computers. And those will be replaced by something else in the future–perhaps a ring, or something smaller, sleeker.

But no matter what form it comes in, a clock is essentially the same. It’s a device that tells time, that gives us information about when the future will happen, how much time we have until it comes. The only difference is that instead of checking the time, our devices have a way of keeping us occupied with it: apps, websites, games, messages, etc.

There’s always room for growth, the saying goes. Potential is something we can imagine. It’s not something we actually see. To have potential is similar to saying that we can do whatever we set our mind to. But will we set our mind on doing something, or will we just say we will?

When we are young, our potential seems limitless. We have an abundant amount of time, an abundant amount of options. But as we age, our time and options begin to dwindle. At some point, we must decide what to invest our time and energy into. We cannot spread ourselves thin, try to be the best at everything. We can only choose so many things, narrow it down to just a handful. For example, we choose hobbies and interests that matter to us, pursue jobs and fields that we can be successful in. For to be skillful and experienced in any field, it requires dedication, and years of practice.

Thus, we focus our talents and abilities on a handful of things out of a plethora. We become experts in them. We actualize our potential, bring what was once imagined into reality. But there is always room for growth–as the saying goes. We can always see a brighter future, a new ability to learn, and pursue new prospects and opportunities. Our potential is a limitless well of possibility. No matter how far we reach down and bring out the potential from within us, there always seems to be more.