The time will never be perfect

Show Notes

The time will never be perfect

When you are young, you're too young. When you're old, you are too old. When you are broke, you can't afford it. When you have a little money, you want a little more. 

Before you begin, you have no idea what you are doing and need to learn more. Before you begin, you have no momentum. And there will always be one more item on the To-Do list before you are ready.

Simply put, it is never the perfect time to begin. And so we kick the can of our cherished but elusive dreams down the road until 'the time is right' while simultaneously pushing the wasted years out of our mind. 

Generally, life pans out like this: there is a period of your youth when you have time and courage but no money. Then come the years when you have enough dosh, but now you have no time. When you finally approach the sunlit uplands of having both cash and spare time, your knees have packed up, you can't get up into the hills any more, and all you want is a blue rinse or a blue passport.

Many people look forward to becoming less busy in the future for their adventurous plans. This pains me for two reasons:

 1. You and I are both battling a terminal illness with no cure and a 100% fatality rate. It is called Life. We will all be dead within a few decades. Deferring living adventurously is, therefore, madness, albeit a madness that is so prevalent in society as to be regarded as standard. It astonishes me how few people rage against this. The risk of living a life that you do not want in the hope that it might eventually buy you the freedom you yearn for is a hell of a chance to take.

 2. Living adventurously is not mutually exclusive to 'real life'. It does not have to be one or the other. You can be both an accountant and live a life bubbling with curiosity and passion.

So here is some advice from a wise old man of 42, who recently succumbed to reading glasses and whose beard is now flecked with grey. The best time to begin living adventurously was years ago. The second best time is right now. 

Whatever time you can spare is better than no time at all. However much money you have is enough to do something. Whatever knowledge you have is enough to get started. Whatever you are capable of is enough for today. 

Over to You: 

• If you were ordered to start your dream project today, regardless of the obstructions in your way, what would you do? 
• How would you make it happen?

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What is The Doorstep Mile?

Would you like a more adventurous life?
Are you being held back by a lack of time or money? By fear, indecision, or a feeling of being selfish or an imposter?
Living adventurously is not about cycling around the world or rowing across an ocean.
Living adventurously is about the attitude you choose each day. It instils an enthusiasm to resurrect the boldness and curiosity that many of us lose as adults.
Whether at work or home, taking the first step to begin a new venture is daunting. If you dream of a big adventure, begin with a microadventure.
This is the Doorstep Mile, the hardest part of every journey.
The Doorstep Mile will reveal why you want to change direction, what’s stopping you, and how to build an adventurous spirit into your busy daily life.
Dream big, but start small.

Don’t yearn for the adventure of a lifetime. Begin a lifetime of living adventurously.
What would your future self advise you to do?
What would you do if you could not fail?
Is your to-do list urgent or important?
You will never simultaneously have enough time, money and mojo.
There are opportunities for adventure in your daily 5-to-9.
The hardest challenge is getting out the front door and beginning: the Doorstep Mile.

Alastair Humphreys, a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, cycled around the world for four years but also schedules a monthly tree climb. He has crossed the Empty Quarter desert, rowed the Atlantic, walked a lap of the M25 and busked through Spain, despite being unable to play the violin.

‘The gospel of short, perspective-shifting bursts of travel closer to home.’ New York Times
‘A life-long adventurer.’ Financial Times
‘Upend your boring routine… it doesn't take much.’ Outside Magazine

Visit www.alastairhumphreys.com to listen to Alastair's podcast, sign up to his newsletter or read his other books.
@al_humphreys