Hello, my name is Hannah, and I am an overthinker and an overly thorough planner. No joke. I adore a good routine. Give me a schedule! I will follow it. (Haha. I amuse myself with the company that I think I keep.) Steve Jobs was, and Mark Zuckerberg is notorious for wearing the same outfit every day.
So naturally, I think — Hannah Muller, member of Club Genius. To bring veracity to my membership, I eat Kashi cereal for breakfast every morning. I eat a salad for lunch every day. I watch an episode of Grey's Anatomy every night right before bed. (Side note, what a fun show! I know that I'm a little late to the party, seeing as I just started season two of 12, but still, McDreamy is a cutie pie.) I water the garden every other day. I work out five times a week, and I swim whenever the sun is shining. So all of these routine quirks make the unpredictability of life a smidge frustrating, but I doubt that I am alone in this. Quick, raise your hand if you can relate!
Anyways, you can plot and plan till you're blue in the face, but you know what, life will never be predictable, and if it is, then it's being unpredictable by being predictable. Sorry, y'all. I digress. My point is that life is beautiful in its newness, and we need to learn to appreciate today for what it is and cease fretting about what tomorrow might not be. So now that we've diagnosed the problem, here's five steps to help us enjoy the journey of life a bit more.
1. You can only control yourself.
You cannot control the actions of others, nor can you control their interpretation of your actions. As a communication major, I implore everyone to communicate thoroughly and effectively. Kindness is key. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you and all that jazz. But as for the rest, you just can't sweat it. Be sweet. Be you, and you'll be okay, even if they're not.
2. Don't let a plot twist derail your day. Simply reroute your schedule!
Oh, this one is not fun. Last semester, I had a group project (Need I say more?), and I'll just keep it short and say that our presentation wasn't finished until the morning that it was due. Definitely not my academic style, but as you can see, I lived through it and just rerouted a lot.
3. Don't get annoyed by the spontaneous, fly by the seat of their pants spirit of others. Learn from them.
They enjoy life in a unique way, one that is totally different from yours, so just give them a chance. You never know what you'll learn; after all, people are indubitably the most unpredictable part of life.
4. Don't overthink it.
This one is pretty self-explanatory. If you find your thoughts are like a broken record, redirect them to something new and more worthy of your time. If it cannot be fixed by your constant fixation and fretting, then let it go. Let it go. Don't let it hold you back anymore. (I hope you just started singing that.)
5. Enjoy today for tomorrow is not given.
This is my current motto, and this is my scripture of the moment—"Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails" (New International Version, Proverbs 19:21). I cannot plan tomorrow. I cannot plan the future. I can only trust the Lord. Because in an unpredictable life, He is faithful. He is my firm foundation in a life of shifting sand. He hasn't failed me yet, which leads me to say—if it ain't broke don't fix it. God is good, and I'm just gonna sit back and enjoy today.
