Are You Enduring or Executing

I was at the gym early this morning on a machine called the Step Mill. First, let me preface all of this by letting you know I despise doing any and all forms of cardio. Second, you have to understand this machine is basically an endless staircase, upon which you are essentially running up a “down” escalator. It’s something most likely invented during the Inquisition or, since they didn’t have the technology back then, maybe created an orthodontist. Either way, it’s pure evil.

As I looked down at the “time” display on the sadistic machine, I noticed it was counting down the minutes I had spent on the machine from one hour. This may seem like a small detail, but it really bothered me. I felt somewhat “trapped” on the Tool-of-Satan, as if it was a sentence I must endure, rather than a mission to complete. It was as if I was trying to hang in there and survive the workout rather than conquer it.

By simply switching the display to time elapsed, logging the work I had accomplished, it totally changed my perspective. Instead of counting down my sentence and biding the remaining time on the Mill, I was now focused on completing intervals one at a time. Each interval was another small victory and brought me one step closer to my goal. I moved from enduring to executing. Instead of letting the Devil’s Contraption have its way with me, I was battling it, one grueling minute at a time.

I think in life, many of us end up enduring rather than executing. We let life “happen” to us instead of proactively “happening” to life. We passively linger on instead of actively seeking to conquer and overcome. This usually leads to a feeling of being victimized and a loss of control. It can become learned helplessness. Life is too short to merely endure. Go execute.

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