After seven seasons, this past fall Sons of Anarchy had its series finale. If you liked this show then you never missed an episode and the rest of you think I’m crazy for starting this newsletter talking about a television show that centered on a fictional outlaw motorcycle club. The protagonist spent the better part of the seven seasons trying to get his club away from being outlaws and into legitimate business. He spent every season committing some pretty heinous crimes to get to that point but nonetheless this was the stated purpose. In the last episode he states to his father figure that he thought he could change but he really can’t and that at the end of the day he will always be a criminal so he embraced it.
As I watched this episode I was feeling pretty burnt out from working 50-60 hour work weeks. I felt like I never had the time to sit back and enjoy life because whenever I slow down I feel like I should be doing more work which then ruins that down time for me. I thought back to my first newsletter of 2014 where I told everyone that 2014 would be THE year that I finally took it easy and enjoyed the life that my wife and I have built together. I talked about more time with family, more vacations, and more dinners out. I sat back and thought that evening that I just need to embrace who I am. I am always going to be the guy that works around the clock. I am always going to be the guy that isn’t satisfied with any modicum of success with what I do and will always strive for more. I just need to understand that’s who I am and embrace it.
At the end of the day though, there has to be a moral to the story. The moral is that no matter what it is you need to embrace, be happy doing it. Every person thinks they will be happy “after” something is achieved or “if” their circumstances change in some way. My advice is to take the “after” and the “ifs” out of your life. Be happy now. If your goal is to lose weight and think you will be happy after you do try to be happy with the person you are already and that you have ability to reach more goals. Happiness is a mindset not a goal. Enjoy all the time you have now and focus on the present you. Keep that perspective and see how it changes your relationships and helps you reach your goals.
Since we have established that my New Year’s resolution is to embrace being a workaholic, give me a call so I can help you strategize on how to buy your new home this year or save money on the mortgage you already have. Please don’t let me have any down time; I’m looking forward to 2015 being even greater than last year.
Happy New Year!
