Life is a game. It may not feel like a game, at times, but if you treat it that way, I know life can be more fun and fulfilling. Games are fun, right? Even if the game has some stress involved, finds you behind at times, and deals with some challenging concepts, it is fun. Isn’t that life? How can we enjoy a game where we take risks, face challenging situations, win some and lose some, and still enjoy it, yet we often find life difficult and stressful? This is an interesting question to ponder. There are two things I want to encourage you to consider this week: treat life as a game, and just make one move at a time.
Treating life as a game means that we don’t take things too seriously. That doesn’t mean there are not serious things to consider, it simply suggests you look at every situation like you are making a move in a game. Have fun with the challenge, look for the lesson and opportunity, think about the where you are heading, consider the next move, make it and feel good that you are moving. Any move is a good one, because the alternative is standing still, staying stuck and getting frustrated. That is one sure way to lose any game you are playing in.
As I am writing this, it is Saturday morning, and I have just finished my training session. Saturday, on my weekly exercise calendar is affectionately known as ‘Muscle-Up Saturday’. Every Saturday for the last few years, I ride my bike to the local park, with workout equipment, and I monopolise the chin-up bar to do muscle-ups. This morning it was raining, but, as crazy as I am, my routine is muscle-ups, so I do it regardless of rain, hail or shine. Today, I did my personal best of 215 muscle-ups in just under 40 mins. Before you start saying: this guy is a crazy freak, just know it didn’t start at 215, and it happened just one move at a time.
When I started ‘Muscle-Up Saturday’, about three years ago, I think I did 20. So, how do you go from 20 to 215? One move at a time. Each Saturday, I would simply add one to five additional muscle-ups, and so from one week to the next, it really felt no different than the previous week. Can you see how, by simply adding one small move each week, and a commitment to doing it every week, seemingly miraculous things are possible? I could never have imagined getting to 100 let-alone 215, but it happened naturally one move at a time. My big goal is 300, which seems impossible right now, but I know that with one small move forward each week, I will have that done in just 25 weeks. So, watch this space.
If you have not listened to this week’s podcast called, It’s never too late to have a happy childhood, with Yair Kellner, I strongly encourage you to do it. Yair is an adventure and outdoor fanatic. He has hiked, climbed, swam, paddled, dog-sledded and Bike-packed, in some of the most extreme conditions, all around the world for the last 61 years. In 2012, whilst competing in a 1000-mile bike-packing invitational event in Alaska, he found himself in an undesirable situation. Actually, that is the understatement of the century. With weather conditions extreme, temperatures around 30 degrees Celsius below freezing, and a wind-chill factor of 60 degrees below, he and is 80kg laden bike fell through the ice into a flowing river.
With only 2 minutes to get out with his 80kg bike, or freeze to death, what do you think he did? I know what I would’ve done… panicked! He didn’t. Instead, he decided he would survive, and then he just made the next logical move. This story is amazing, as he got through a situation that so many would not have, simply because he just kept making the next move. You will love this podcast and will be captivated by Yair and his story.
Yair treats his life as a game. Every day for him is a fun adventure, and I feel the same about my life. What about you? Every day you wake up is a good day. Every day you have a blank page to imagine, explore and create. Please get excited about your life. Look for the joy in every situation. Most of all I want you to know that you can easily win the game of life, whatever that means for you, if you simply make one move at a time.