A Note That Saved My Life

Are you letting life ragdoll you?

I remember the exact moment I wrote this note.

This thought, or rather, this feeling, just came to me on my way to grab coffee.

It wasn't the most prosperous time of my journey. Getting out of bed was a challenge, buying a cup of coffee was quite an investment, and admitting either to my loved ones would, in my mind, mean being defeated by life.

But the moment when I wrote that note largely saved me.

I'm sure you had those moments as well. You don't know what caused them, but you are suddenly struck with an intense, potentially life-changing insight. I stopped walking, pulled out my phone, and wrote it down.

However, I never shared it, as I said I "had to." Until now. Why? Maybe because it felt too personal at that time, considering the circumstances under which I wrote it. But that's not what I want to talk about today.

Last month, I returned to that same street after quite a while. And I remembered the note.

I remembered it because what I wrote in it is one of the main reasons why I'm here today.

Here today, blessed with thousands of people taking the time out of their day to read what I have to say.

Here today, living life instead of waiting for life to happen to me or, even worse, hiding from it.

And, here today, in the most literal sense, alive.

When I look back at my life, it looks like a series of mistakes and unfortunate events that led to me feeling stuck over and over again, followed by periods of finding a way to get unstuck.

Maybe this last statement sounds sad, gloomy, or pessimistic to some. But when I write it, what I feel is gratitude and excitement. That's because I'm aware of something that's missing from this description of my life.

Those periods of getting unstuck, although often painful, lonely, and full of self-doubt, are some of the most rewarding and precious periods a human can experience. You cannot help but come out of them wiser and, at the same time, more confident and humble, a more complete human being.

And although every instance of getting stuck is unique in some way, every period of getting unstuck starts the same: with the realization that this is life. This, right now, is it. And you are the only one who can live it. No amount of timeless wisdom, practical advice, or even emotional support can help you if you don't take a decisive attitude towards your existence.

If you don't decide that, for better or worse, you will be the agent of your life and shape your life circumstances, not just wait to be directed by them, you will remain stuck.

And staying stuck is nothing more than standing in place, refusing to make a move, hoping that life will throw you in the right direction once it's done ragdolling you.

A relationship with life that you agree on when you refuse to take initiative

Well, I refuse to be ragdolled. And I hope you will too.

Maybe the best way to end this rant of mine is for you to read the note from the beginning once again.

Maybe the best thing to do in the first place was to just read the note and jump back into your life. But thank you for reading the whole thing. The only way to prove you found it valuable is to start getting unstuck.

You got this. Talk to you soon.

P.S. The waitlist for the Sisyphus Society is now open.

I cannot lie to you and promise to solve all of your life’s problems.

But I can promise you a community of people who refuse to be ragdolled by life.

Take 30 seconds to join the waitlist here.

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