YOLO— Another Perspective
Drake says “You only live once, that’s the motto, YOLO.”
The Strokes, an American band, had a song call “You only live once.”
Frank Sinatra also mentioned something similar “You only live once, and the way I live, once is enough.”
And I am sure plenty of others have said it as well. But the profoundness of it all did not really resonate with me until recently.
After having the opportunity to discuss with a follower of mine, I was introduced to another “You only live once” perspective. Bobby Darin, an American singer and actor, who unfortunately died at the young age of 37, had an interesting view and understanding of “YOLO” which hit me like a tone of bricks.
I am honored to have the opportunity to share with you my perspective and hope it will give you some great pondering time as well.
“It isn’t true that you only live once. You only die once. You live a lot of times, if you know how.” — Bobby Darin
As I stared at my computer screen, I re-read this quote over and over again as if I had NEVER read something so profound. It made so much sense to me.
Here’s why
1) A Fitness Angle
If you’ve ever been someone who attempted to watch what you ate and/or started exercising you’ll, more than likely, connect with what I am about to say.
If there is something I have learned throughout the years in helping people lose weight and helping them discover a new and more productive mindset is that ANYONE who has the “You Only Live Once” (YOLO) mentality all while wanting to improve their physical self will, soon or later, hit a major fitness wall.
They’ll hit “Because I Only Live Once, I Can Eat Anything And Everything” type of wall.
When you hit that wall or getting a little bit too close to that type of wall, your perception of food and your relationship with food is totally misconstrued because by then, you view FOOD as something that can control ANYTHING.
Food is the costume you see and makes you laugh on Halloween; it can remind you of some good times and a few anecdotes, but it is not there to consume your every thoughts nor to control your every move.
The thing is YOU want to be the ONE controlling your thoughts and behaviors which is, in my opinion, the only way “to live a lot of times.”
Letting food control you is like letting someone else dictate your every movement and words. Slowly, and oftentimes unconsciously, you’ll start finding ways to excuse your behaviors without fully realizing you’ve created your situation. It completely removes whatever inner power you possess. It gradually blinds you to the simple fact that if you continue in this rabbit hole, you’ll eventually consider this “food controlled life” as you “living THE life” when in reality, it is so far from the truth.
By then, you’ve disconnected yourself from the productive and rewarding impact life can have when you choose to live it a little bit differently then that.
2) A Life angle
What’s the YOLO mindset do to people who loves adrenaline situations and take a bunch of risks?
Well, it can put you in a whirlwind type of world.
You don’t see nor consider any limitation and although I, personally, believe we should go all out in a lot of ways, we should also take a few steps back at times and really look into what we’re about to do. Because when you don’t, your world will gradually shatter which you won’t start realizing until it is actually falling apart.
How many people become addicted to different destructive lifestyles? Too many to keep count of to be honest and that in itself, is terrifying when you start thinking about it.
Your YOLO lifestyle can be cool when you think of skydiving but once that high is gone, you’ll look for something else to get you pumped up. It can be anything; an altercation with a stranger, a disagreement with your spouse, a silent or vocal confrontation with your boss, a middle finger flicking war with another driver; do I have to keep going? You get my point.
The thing is YOU are the ONE living the life you put forth, no one else. But if you don’t strategize or take time to think and reflect on your thoughts and behaviors, you’ll become, fairly quickly, this person who has no consideration for themselves nor for the life you once wanted to live.
Slowly, and oftentimes unconsciously, you’ll start drifting away from what made you smile in the morning. You’ll enter another world where, by yourself, you’ll wonder why in the heck no one else is coming along with you?
How can you attempt to “live a lot of times”?
You can choose daily LIFE moments instead of the ALL or NOTHING type of life, but for that to happen, you want to — Trust and Believe in yourself all while embracing the ride you’re on.
When you trust yourself, you know, deep down, that you’ll eventually get on the right path. You know that no matter which challenges or storms are heading your way, you’ll overcome them all. One at the time maybe but still, you’ll get through them.
When you believe in yourself, you know a bigger and better future is coming your way. You understand you may have stumbled a few times yet you are no longer discouraged, you’ve found your strength.
As you look at your days and how you choose to live them, you’ll see yourself smile a little bit more. You’ll see yourself become happier and happier because of your intentionality and desire for a new way to live YOUR daily life moments.
And because you said yes to living a lot of times, you’ll create plenty of awesome moments for yourself and others. You’ll become more patient with yourself and with others. You’ll learn daily and truly see the importance or significance for such change within your life.
I will end with this — I am not against people wanting to go all out, because I still do myself. I, however, became aware of when you choose to live each moment for what it is, it brings you to a totally new level of awareness and clarity for what matters in your life. It leads you to filter your thoughts and/or behaviors and see which ones you want to keep using or completely remove from your daily life moments.
And because you’re the ONE controlling YOUR life — make sure to embrace it to the best of your abilities because we only die once but can live a lot of times.
