The Real Test is.... Does it bring you Joy?

You know Life has this sinister way of hemming you in.

Of digging these bar ditches along your path that keep you moving in a certain direction....

Kinda like a cow in a stock pen.

You shuffle along for so long that one day you look up and you can't for the life of you figure out how you got here and why you're even here at all or where here is.

It starts when we are Kids.... there are set curriculums starting as early as Pre-K.... you learn by a certain approach or method that is catered to the majority or worse yet, that is set up so you eventually score well on some God-awful state aptitude test.

Your are pressured by peers, by parents, by princes and paupers to do this, be this, look a certain way, look away, maintain the Christian standard (whatever the hell that is), have a Puritan work ethic (what's a Puritan - do they even teach that in school anymore?), maintain your virginity till marriage (now I know they don't teach that anymore), be skinny, be nice, be yourself (as long as it fits in the cookie cutter mold), be someone else.

But there's one thing missing from this little World Controlled Life Plan.

The Life Plan doesn't have a clause for....

What brings you Joy.

And that's where the individual has to step up and flip the Life Switch for Manual Override.

For many of us, what brings us Joy and what brings us a Living....

Are 2 different things.

And that's too bad.... but you gotta do what you gotta do.

I, of all people, understand that.

Buy never give up the Fight and the Right for Joy in your life.

Beg for it, Borrow for it, Steal it if you have to, but prioritize your Life and your daily activities so that for at least some part of every day, you touch that thing or things that bring you Joy.

And, most importantly, realize that sometimes it is not the Activity itself that may bring you Joy but the results or consequences of that activity.

The best example of that is my Lifestyle choices.... Diet and Nutrition, Exercise, Stress Management.

I might want to eat pie and cobbler and cookies all the time instead of Lean Meats, Veggies and Fruits, but I know that the better diet will make me feel better and feeling better is a Joy in and of itself.

Another example is the intense CrossFit workouts that I do.  While I am thankful for being able to do them physically, it would be a non-existent stretch to say that I feel joy while sweating through them.  But the way I feel and look while working out regularly brings me great Joy.

I wouldn't call the sort of challenging, intense technical work I do joyful, but I know that it keeps me sharp, improves my cognitive abilities, provides me some social interaction and funds my lifestyle..... and for that I am joyful in my work.

So the next time you are thinking of embarking on a new commitment of your time or you just have one of those life altering decisions to make or you're just doing a Life Priority Check,  just ask yourself.....

Will this bring me Joy?