From The Wishing Life To The Action Life
The Wishing Life
As the name itself says, wishing life is giving in to the situation and expecting the odds to be in our favour. We give so much importance to luck and serendipity that we put effort only when we have it as the only option.
We don’t have much control of our life in this path. We are passionate enough, but putting in the work feels challenging in this phase. Wishing life is when other peoples’ achievements inspire us, and we want to become like them.
It is an excellent way of living if we learn from the life experiences of our idols. But that’s not it. This phase has to wane as we enter adulthood. We have to materialise that inspiration and create something for which we can take full credit. Every person is unique, and we have to customise the learning process for ourselves.
Wishing life takes you nowhere if you don’t strive for it. That’s where the exciting part comes.
The Action Life
The word “action” itself hits the nerve to put us out of the comfort zone and go hustle. But the momentum is short-lived.
We see thriller movies and enjoy. We watch action films and sometimes wonder how they are doing all the stunts even in expert supervision. I am not talking about the CGI (computer-generated imagery) cinema. I am talking about movies like Misson Impossible and Die Hard series.
When you ponder about it, these people are risking their lives even in guidance to perform flawlessly. They have practised a lot before showing us the amazing stunts. We only see the results; the struggle and real “action” of practising are what we haven’t seen.
Pragmatic people believe in this kind of lifestyle. For any new task or pursuit, they don’t tell how to do it. Instead, they show how it’s done. It is one of the admired qualities of a leader that sets them apart from the crowd.
Action life is a lot more exciting because you get to experiment with crazy ideas that spark creativity and improves learning with practice.
How To Shift To The Action Life?
The right way I’ve learned from past experiences and movies is: you have to take risks for the learning sake. Fear of judgement is in our head because we have been following stereotypes since our childhood (if you had a normal one). If you live with ordinary people, you will become like them. Living with smart people will challenge your beliefs and force you to think every time.
What we see is what we mostly end up believing as accurate. We hardly question anything and just flow with the situation.
Action life means letting your curiosity explore and ask reasonable questions. It not only improves the learning but also builds trust in the process because now you know you have learned something valuable to apply in the future.
We gain a broader perspective when asking questions. So let your curiosity fly and ask questions without fear. It is a simple exercise for personal development.
This blog belongs to a series of posts I am publishing in this 100-days streak. Navigate to the end of the article 22 for the references from day 23 onwards. If you would like to read the ones before day 22, here is the first one that documents them in the end.
~ Sanjeev
