My life’s motto: Run my race and finish with delight.
Just seven words. Easy to remember. Keeps me focused. Helps me enrich my life.
Too often, we chase others’ dreams, running races not meant for us. This leaves us dissatisfied, disillusioned, and dismissive of life.
My motto focuses on running my unique race – one suited to my talents, skills, and experiences. It’s a race only I can run, impacting people in ways only I can. But it’s not just about running; it’s about finishing with delight. To do this, I must constantly ask myself: is this race mine? Does it amplify my unique abilities? Is it in line with my potential?
As a Christian, I draw inspiration from Saint Paul but have made this motto my own. For the past 15 years, it has positively shaped my life.
Here is how I go about achieving this motto.
Systematically build skills to generate and exploit options.
Build. Generate. Exploit. I’m not waiting for destiny to push me forward. Though I believe in luck, I do what I can by honing my skills, meeting new people, and exploring various paths. I take initiative. When I act, the world around me helps me. Until I do, the world stands still. Newton’s law of motion applied to personal life.
I approach this systematically—a methodical, intentional way of building things. It’s not left to chance, but rather a thoughtful process of considering my current skills, potential opportunities, and what skills will be useful in the future.
Having multiple options is good. Say you are looking for a job. If you have only one offer, you’ll take it out of desperation. But if you have many offers, you can negotiate and pick the best one for you. Whether it’s hobbies or job offers, generating options gives you leverage.
But having options alone aren’t enough—you must seize them before they expire. By taking advantage of each opportunity, you get the capability to generate more options. If not, they fade away and progress stalls.
As I methodically build skills to generate options and take advantage of them, I develop talents that help me run my unique race. With acquired skills and experiences under my belt, I find joy in pursuing my own path.
I have been running such a race for the past 15 years. I enjoy this race. I’m sure I’m going to run this until the day I die.