Drop in a good wave, ride it for however long you can, then swim back to catch another. Wash, rinse, repeat.
Such is the cycle of the beautiful sport of surfing. The rideable waves may be spaced out at times, but there is an endless summer of them that leaves surfers stoked.
We can learn a lot from surfing that can be applied to our lives on dry-land. First, surfers don’t go out on their boards to ride just one wave; they ride multiple. They aren’t caught up in perfectionism in the sense they wait for the one unicorn of waves to surf. Instead, they catch many different waves. Sometimes it’s a great ride and other times they have to bail out.
At the same time, surfers also don’t ride every wave that comes their way. They are particular and patient. Some waves might be “tubular” and awesome to ride while others are “ankle slappers” and too small to ride. Surfers are generally not impulsive and are willing to wait for the good stuff, while at the same time not frozen by perfection if a semi-decent wave comes their way.
Surfers have an abundance mindset. They know there is an endless supply of waves and that they might have to wait a little while for the ones they want. Likewise surfers will still ride out on days where the waves might not be as good because they have hope that the waves of opportunity will still roll in. At the same time, while a patient bunch, surfers won’t float endlessly waiting for the “perfect wave.” They know there is no such thing and sometimes even the waves that don’t look good coming in surprise you and turn into something good if you give it a chance.
What a lesson for life, dude!
Our one life isn’t tied to just one wave. If we adopt the surfer’s mindset, we will ride many during our lifetime; some good and some bad. They will give us the stories that provide texture to our lives and the experiences that give us meaning.
However, we cannot and should not ride every wave that comes our way. We need to be selective and patient like a good surfer yet careful not to succumb to perfectionism. If we become overly selective, we will always be waiting and never riding. We also risk being swept away with the current like an untethered buoy.
Perfection is an unattainable ideal. Outside of God or whatever eternal power or creator you believe in, nothing is perfect. Telling ourselves we are waiting for the “perfect moment” to do something is just one way we procrastinate. Another way is when we say things like, “it’s not the right time,” or “I’m waiting for [blank] to [happen or finish] and then I’ll start,” or “I’ll do it tomorrow.” These are all things we tell ourselves to justify not taking action due to fear, insecurity, overwhelm, or a lack of motivation. It’s not that you are never going to pursue that lofty goal or do that difficult task. You still aspire to do it, just tomorrow not today. So you haven’t quit on that dream, right?
If we are being honest with ourselves, when we make these excuses and procrastinate, in a way we have momentarily quit. It’s like waking up and not wanting to get out of bed or scrolling on social media. We try to convince ourselves that it’s okay to snuggle just a little bit longer under the comforter or make just one more swipe up on the screen because we aren’t quitting, we just are taking a little break. We’ll get to the hard thing at some point.. The reality is that these delays add up to cement our inaction so in a way when we procrastinate we are quitting on ourselves. We justify our procrastination tactics because they make us feel good, at least better than doing the hard thing or making an extra effort. We get a high just like an intoxicating and addictive drug. And just like getting high on drugs begets a devastating crash, procrastination brings quick relief but lasting regret.
Time, like waves, waits for no one. If we aren’t careful, our procrastination habits will cause us to miss many wonderful life changing opportunities. That’s the regret we want to avoid.
If you find yourself procrastinating, be gentle with yourself, though. It’s simply human nature to want to hit “the easy button” or put things off. However, success and achievement requires taking action and doing hard things. Looking back on your greatest accomplishments, I know you’ll agree that anything worth doing is going to be hard.
Training ourselves to act instead of procrastinating doesn’t happen overnight. The mental muscle of discipline takes time to develop just as any other bodily muscle. Tackle smaller tolerations first and try to break down big goals into smaller, more manageable tasks. Make time to do a brain dump and write it down. Then prioritize the tasks from easiest to hardest. Begin with the easiest one and do it first thing in the morning. Then move clinically down the list.
As you do so, you’ll feel an endorphin rush which will spark your motivation and confidence to continue. This momentum will build and pretty soon you’ll have conquered that once seemingly unachievable hard thing and will be looking ahead to the next one. Just like the surfer who rides smaller waves for practice becomes adept at surfing bigger ones, your mental exercising will leave your mind ready to conquer whatever you’ve been procrastinating.
Soon you’ll be an accomplished surfer of the waves of your life, “hanging ten,” and enjoying the ride.
Keep being amazing,
