We can’t bottle up time or save it in a capsule. Our bodies change, the kids get older, and life in general changes. There are things you have to do now, or forever lose the opportunity. Here are my top five reasons to do it now.
Number 1: Your Health Won’t Allow It Later
No matter how good of shape you’re in or how hard you work, at some point your health won’t allow you to do certain things. For example, a great baseball pitcher could throw 103 mph at age 21 while only being able to hit 75 mph at 50 years old. The great pitcher is still throwing faster than the average human, but they can’t do what they once could. Other examples:
- An elite rock climber could scale mountains at age 25 they could only dream of at age 75.
- A football player that could run the 40 yard dash in 4.6 seconds at age 20 won’t be able to do that when they’re 45.
- Someone who used to run marathons in under two and a half hours won’t be able to do that forever.
There are only so many things our health will allow. Even something as simple as a three-day backpacking trip has a shelf life. At some point in a person’s life, they won’t be able to backpack for three days.
Same for things like climbing up the stairs of the Eiffel Tower, a trip to Europe that requires walking a few miles every day, or a five mile round trip hike to a waterfall. Everything has a shelf life.
Think about what you want to do and do the things now that you won’t be able to do later.
Recommended Reading: Die With Zero
Number 2: You’ll Age Out of It
When I was a senior in college, I took a spring break trip to Lake Havasu. I was surrounded by spring breakers–I’d be surprised if anyone was over the age of 23. There was a very small window of time for me to take that trip.
If I tried to take it when I was in high school, number one my parents wouldn’t have let me go. Number two, I wouldn’t have been old enough to get into bars and do other activities.
And here’s the laughable part. If I tried to take that trip now as a 46-year old man, it wouldn’t be fun for myriad reasons. It doesn’t matter that I have more money now, can rent a nicer house boat, or afford to fly instead of drive. The trip just wouldn’t work.
There are lots of things like this in life, so find the things you want to do that you’ll age out of. Do them as quickly as possible.
Number 3: Small Window With Kids
When both my kids were under the age of four, I used to take them for bike rides to the park on a seat attached to the front of the bike. They both fit great and really liked the rides.
There came a day with both kids though where they could no longer comfortably fit in the seats. It was the end of those rides, and there was no rewinding time.
There’s a small window of things like this that you can do with kids. Their interests are going to change and they aren’t going to want, or be able to do the same things year after year.
- A trip to the amusement park or zoo isn’t going to be as fun for a 14 year-old as a five year-old.
- At some point, your kids aren’t going to want to kick the soccer ball around in the backyard.
- Eventually kids will prefer to go to frozen yogurt or ice cream with their friends instead of you.
- They won’t be able to sit in your lap forever.
Point being, take advantage of the things you can do with your kids today because the window of time is short and things never stay the same.
Related: Do It Now
Number 4: A Current Interest or Hobby
Interests and hobbies change over time. I’ve gone through two time periods where I really loved photography. Now I’m not that interested in it. I still like taking the occasional photo but I’m no longer waking up two hours before sunrise or missing dinner with the family to take photos at sunset.
I had a window of time where I really enjoyed photography, and that window is currently shut. It might open back up but my life and interests have changed.
If you have kids, this really applies. There are things your kids are going to be interested in now that they won’t be in five years. Take your kids to those experiences now, because they are almost guaranteed to change.
So if you have a current interest or hobby, now is the perfect time to pursue it–because it may not last for long.
Number 5: Major Bucket List Item
Have a major bucket list item you want to do? Do it as quickly as possible, and here’s why. Things change and you may not be able to do that thing in the future.
For example, someone who always wanted to see the “House that Ruth Built”, the Old Yankee Stadium, would be disappointed had they waited because it was fully demolished in 2010. There’s a new Yankee Stadium but Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe Dimaggio, Mickey Mantle, and Roger Maris never played there. Still cool, but not the same experience.
Other examples:
- Historical landmarks that shut down
- Countries to visit that have become too dangerous to visit
- National Parks that look very different from 20 years ago
- Decorated college football programs that are no longer relevant or good
- Places you can no longer access due to declining health
Point being, things change and the bucket list item of today isn’t guaranteed to be the same experience decades from now.
Conclusion
Life isn’t filled with guarantees. There are things you should do as soon as possible. That’s not to suggest putting $75,000 on your credit card to take your dream vacation.
What I am suggesting though is if you currently have the means and time, create the opportunity for what you want to do now. You may be able to hold off a few years, but it’s not a guarantee. And that may be something you grow to regret.
What do you want to do now that might change over the coming years and decades?
