Reading Time: 3 minutesDo Something You Love Each Day This Week
Simple Instructions:
- Take at least 10 minutes each day to do something you love.
- It does not need to have any practical purpose. You can do it simply because you love it.
- You can choose something different each day.
Watch this video for an explanation of this Well-Being Practice from Whole Life Challenge co-founders Andy Petranek and Michael Stanwyck.
Why Is This Practice Important?
We all do things we have to do, we all do things we don’t like to do, and we’ll all do things we get paid to do. After all that, there is often little time left to do things we really love to do.
And doing what we love can seem selfish when there is so much “obligation” in our lives.
When our motivations are external, i.e. something is expected, “good,” or owed, we have a strong social incentive to get it done first. We tell ourselves that when our debts are paid, we’ll allow ourselves a little pleasure. Until the world is taken care of, it doesn’t feel right to take time for ourselves.
But it is the things we love that give meaning to life.
And people who have meaning in their lives give back to the world even when they’re not doing anything.
Wait, how does that work?
Consider that you were born with gifts — not things to give away, but unique ways that you appreciate the world. Given there are infinite ways to appreciate the world, your development and enjoyment of your gifts may be the best way to share with the world an entirely different way of being — your way of being. And that light that you shine may illuminate a discovery for someone else. They may find their passion or they may simply see that life can be lived with love instead of obligation.
This week’s practice is an exercise in not putting yourself last, and making the time to do something you love. And doing something for yourself may be the best thing you’ll ever do for someone else.
For More on This Practice
On this week’s podcast, Andy talks with the director of CrossFit Gymnastics, and former firefighter and cheerleader (literally), Jeff Tucker. After retiring from being a firefighter, Jeff went back to school.
He got within three hours of completing his dissertation to earn his Masters degree in history, when he realized he hated academia. So, he did an about-face and went back to doing something he loved — coaching gymnastics.
Listen to the podcast to learn what happens when you follow your passions. Jeff also shares how to keep the fun in your training and avoid burnout.
He graduated from UCLA with a BA in philosophy as well as a degree from the Southern California School of Culinary Arts, and feels food is one of the most important parts of a life - it can nourish, heal, and bring people together.
Michael believes health and well-being are as much a state of mind as they are a state of the body, and when it comes to fitness, food, and life in general, he thinks slow is much better than fast (most of the time). Stopping regularly to examine things is the surest way to put down roots and grow.
He knows he will never be done with his own work, and believes the best thing you can do for your well-being starts with loving and working from what you’ve got right now.
