Idea Buried

Monday happens to be my favorite day of the week. The idea of starting fresh, renewing work from the previous week, and finally having the opportunity to clamp, once again, at the bit of the cart you’ve been pulling is very refreshing. Today is a new day. This is a new week. If you have a bad day, wait for tomorrow. I can’t wait for Friday. This will be a significant week, as many different elements are being put to the fire and refined, defined, and burnt for what they really are.

I was recently criticized as failing to live a life others could model their lives after; sharp sarcasm from the mouth of a very, very close relative who believes I’ve failed to have grown up fully. While my initial response is “What’s the golden standard, champ?” A mortgage payment? A job? A family? A cat? A gun rack? 2 paid weeks of vacation per year? Ironic, as I’m writing this in a Starbucks, free from having to punch a time clock.

One thing I’m learning in life is that similar people attract similar people. Perhaps it’s the natural order of the universe, or simply the fact that magnets attract, but I’ve come in contact with a number of very good people that seem to echo similar thought processes, circumstances, and mindsets. Believe it or not, it’s very refreshing. I cannot speak for others in different circumstances, as I do not know what goes on in their mind. But there is something very refreshing about constantly having opportunity knock, or to take a part in its creation. After speaking with a business partner of mine, he gave me the report that his current business is doing quite well, and that a new product line is developing very well. As somebody who has experienced true hell for the past few years, it is exciting to watch as he’s overcoming incredible circumstances and moving ahead in life.

Perspective. Perception. Reality. While the experience I had in New York City was not one I think fondly of, I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Moving there allowed me to take a firsthand look into the seemingly-plush life of one of the cities top-tier executives. it’s not often that you can take a look into the lifestyle of somebody you may have aspired to become like, only to discover the lifestyle actually isn’t very much like one you’d want. I call that education at its finest. In a similar manner, I’ve been able to peek behind many closed doors, country clubs, and plush loft apartments of those who enjoy the successful lifestyle. It’s helped me to identify what it is that I want from life. And it’s surprising to discover what that really is.

I’ve worked, firsthand, with those who have had – and lost – net worths of between $2.5M to well over $50M. I’ve seen those who have given up and accepted their defeat, and also those who have clung to the side of a mountain, hanging on for dear life, while all of Hell’s nature strives to make them quit. “Aaron, this feels like I’m shutting down a dream” were the painful words I heard of one such individual, as we cleaned up last remnants of a once-successful business. This same individual told me, upon my return from New York, “Aaron, in life we have the choice of climbing our mountain. And when I think about the people I want to work with, it’s the people who are next to me, climbing the mountain, and hanging on for dear life. I don’t want the people who have camped at the base of the mountain.”

This mountain of life. This eternal climb that calls to us. What’s at the top? There are many who can speculate and ponder what is at the top of life’s mountain. However, very few will ever reach it, while very many will criticize and doubt those who try. Perhaps there’s nothing safe about going beyond the ordinary. However, life is very, very short and I don’t want to know that I shirked the opportunity to see new heights.

Dig in.

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