Too Busy vs Not Busy Enough

byMarkA1

1.1K followers

5 months ago

This is one of those topics I've been contemplating for most of my adult life. You see, I've always been more of an introvert. I'm not one of those social butterfly types that likes to spend my free time with others. It's not like I have much free time, anyhow. But to be perfectly honest, that's the way I like it.

Ever since I can remember, friends have tried to pull me away from my work, usually because they think it's not normal and that I should be spending my spare time the way the other "normies" do. And yes, I'll admit that it's sometimes fun to hang out with others and just shoot the breeze. However, I don't need that nearly as often as my friends and family do. I'd much rather be building or creating something, or at least working toward some goal that's important to me.

The way I see it, we have a certain amount of time on this planet. Sure, we can debate all day about what happens when it's over, where we go, whether there's an afterlife, or whether we come back for another round in another physical body. But even if we do, are we going to remember this lifetime? Would anyone seriously just pick up where they left off and decide it was finally time to go after some achievement they failed to accomplish in their last lifetime?

I've heard countless stories of people who say they remember flashes of previous lifetime, but even if that's the case, they now have completely new identities with new sets of interests. If their dream last time around was to become a pilot, that's probably the last thing on their mind now. So as far as I'm concerned, this is the only physical life I can truly count on - and only for so long!

Whatever plans I have, or accomplishments I'd like to see materialize, I only have so long to get them done. I have no idea when I might suddenly drop dead, so there's a sense of urgency there to make things happen, while it's still possible. Life can change in the blink of an eye, so there's no guarantee that you can always do these things later.

I don't recommend putting things off that you're that passionate about, because when you realize how little time you have to set your biggest dreams in motion, it will begin to nag at you regularly until you see yourself making some kind of progress. In my case, there's a ton of things I'm trying to get done. And as if that wasn't enough, there's a ton of obstacles lying in the way of each of them. So when people try to tell me I'm too busy for my own good, I simply ignore it, knowing that at least I won't be one of those poor souls lying on my death bed wishing I'd seen these things through.

I HAVE to publish the book I'm working on, because it's my first and it's a lifelong dream. It's also a story that needs to be told. I also HAVE to do something with music, because I've played guitar since I was 7 and it's been nagging at me since I began learning to play other instruments, as well. Clearly, music is demanding a greater presence in my life. I've also gone into business with a good friend, chasing government construction and maintenance contracts. There's so much money in that, I couldn't possibly overlook it.

And that's not all. I'm obsessed with making AI work for me, so I spend a great deal of time learning how to use it. The same goes for crypto, which is why I've begun learning about trading strategies, so I can get that working for me, as well. I can easily see myself scouring the markets in my free time and placing trades daily, rather than just letting it sit there.

I've also taken to selling items online, especially when I can find something at a good price that I know I can flip. I plan to do this with cars, at some point in the not-too-distant future. I also do some minor landscaping jobs, on occasion. I'm thinking of scaling this operation up, especially if I can pair those services with some of our contracting work. As if that wasn't enough, I'm also an Uber driver. That pairs quite well with driving around town for other reasons, whether it's to the nearby military base to visit a job site we plan to bid on or to hit an estate sale for items I can flip.

And finally, the one thing many of these activities require in common is websites. That's why I'm here on Wealthy Affiliate, after all these years. Not only am I learning to make some money with affiliate marketing, which is yet another income stream I can add to the equation, but I also need the skills I'm learning here to make all that other stuff happen and maintain a presence on the web. The world around us is changing rapidly and the marketplace of the future will largely be online.

So, getting back to what I said about friends thinking I'm too busy, which of these pursuits should I give up to make them all feel better? And for what purpose? To hit the bars with them on weekends, the same way they've been doing for decades? I can honestly say I left that behind years ago and I don't really miss it. I also can't just sit around and watch sports like so many others do. If I'm not playing the game myself, I don't see the point in getting so excited about it.

I'll conclude this by stating the obvious, that we're not all wired the same way. And I strongly suspect that there are many others here in the WA community that would agree, which is what keeps us here. The rest of the world might not get what we're all about, but at least where it concerns our livelihoods and plans for the future, we have finally found "our people."

May we all have a wonderful and productive day!