A Single Seed: Working Today to Change Tomorrow

Do you think you can predict the future? Maybe not "the" future, but your immediate future? How about forecasting what your tomorrow will look like? Chances are, if most people were asked this question, they would reply that they had a good idea of what their tomorrow would have in store, besides any elements that are out of their control.

For the most part, we know what our days will contain. Go to work. Eat when necessary. Spend time with family. Watch some TV. Go for a run. Or maybe none of those things. But as humans in the 21st century, we've been conditioned to have some sort of schedule, as it's almost necessary in any society. Schedules are great, but can you predict what YOU will be like tomorrow? Not your day, but yourself? How much knowledge will you have? Muscle mass? Nutrients in your body? Healthy relationships?

Every tomorrow is a result of what you do today. While we cannot control everything that may happen in our day, we have the power to influence what we'll be like in a day or two. By reading for a half-hour today, you will almost certainly have slightly more knowledge tomorrow than you did when you woke up today. By going for walk around the lake, your leg muscles will continue to fight against any deterioration, and the vitamin D from the sun can do wonders for lifting your mood. Putting $20 towards your credit card debt may not seem like much, but that's $20 that won't collect interest in the future.

Some of these are fairly easy to measure from one day to the next, whether it be weight loss, investing, or debt payments. Others are more difficult, but still easy to predict if the level will have risen. Knowledge will likely grow with reading or studying. Happiness will probably rise if you reach out to an old friend, or simply soak up some sun. Muscle mass will almost certainly increase if you hit the gym. Your retirement plan will become a bit more realistic with every dollar invested.

Inversely, by not doing much to increase in a certain area, we can say with a good probability that the given realm will not increase, and may even decrease. This is not to say that you need to do everything listed above in order to ensure that you will have a desirable tomorrow, but even doing one thing today to improve your tomorrow is a step in the right direction. By not exercising, our muscles will slowly become weaker, as our bodies will naturally continue to decline without any resistance. Debt may increase if money is not allocated to paying it off. Knowledge may not decrease, but with no new information input from the previous day, it's unlikely that your brain will function at a higher rate tomorrow.

There are myriad ways to make your future self a tiny bit better than you were today. Consequently, there are equal amount of ways to remain the same. Making five changes today might be daunting, but starting with one can be simple. A superhuman effort is not necessary to improve on a daily basis.

Our days are all limited. What will you do with the rest of your tomorrows?

"A Single Seed" is my attempt to get out one idea every day that I've learned or accumulated over the years, with the hope that it may stick in someone else's memory bank as well. The idea may be related to fitness, business, life, or philosophy, but I think you'll find that many can change domains if you wish them to. With each seed planted, a new life awaits.

Image credit: https://pixabay.com/en/calendar-book-2018-date-year-day-3045825/