I’ve been trying to cultivate a practice of love for my future self.
It’s in part delaying instant gratification and avoiding procrastination but it’s more. It’s also making sure that the future self is happier because of what I do now.
A Personal Example:
When I was leaving for my home town from my base, I spent the morning cleaning up the room, covering the bed, cleaning the kitchen stand, the bathroom and the toilet. I also washed all clothes and put them to dry inside on cloth stand.
The point was: most likely I’d come back in the evening and would be tired. Would likely have office from next day. So by doing chores now, when I come back 2-3 weeks later, I could have things sorted. At best, it’d need a quick sweep only.
Instead I came in nearly 2 months. When I came back, it was unexpected. The windows opened in a dust storm and everything was covered in layers of dust, including all clothes that I’d washed. Plus insects had creeped up in kitchen cabinet, spoiling bunch of food, even packed. I’d tried to make it easy for my future self but it didn’t work out this time.
I had come on Saturday evening. A part of me thought that tomorrow is Sunday, I could cleanup the bed now and do the rest tomorrow. But I’d to go early for a doctor appointment on Sunday and I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to do the chores later. I again thought I should make it easier for my future self.
So I spent 3-4 hours till 10.30 PM cleaning up & washing up everything and then took a shower. By now I was exhausted and crashed into the bed after some time.
But next day, waking up to a clean room, clean desk, everything cleanly sorted and arranged made me much happier. Only needed to handover the trash. It also relaxed my schedule and I could focus on other things after the appointment.
Such a behavior of cultivating love for future self is also an antidote to procrastination and instant gratification.
Develop a Love for Your Future Self
Consider for a minute. If you develop love for your future self:
- You complete your work way before deadline, so that your future self doesn’t suffer stress and anxiety.
- You don’t binge eat junk food. Your future self would have to work extra hard to burn it off. Or it would be overweight and unhealthy.
- You don’t binge watch some series till 3 AM, because your future self would wake up with lack of sleep, headache and stress.
- Basically, you make choices that make your future self healthier, happier and closer to the person you want to be.
The key is to balance the present self & the future self. Your present self also needs to be rewarded & pampered, so do it. But not at the cost of your future self.
On good days, do it when the present self has earned it. On bad days, do it anyway.
Being loving compassionate to our self is the key. After all, we are going to live with us till the end, we might as well develop a loving relationship 🙂
Till the next time, keep trailing on your Untrailed Path.
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