Have you ever had a moment in your life where you seriously sat down and thought about what you were doing? Where you're going with your life? Or most importantly, if you're actually happy?
I had that moment this week after I got a call from my mom letting me know that my Grandfather was being taken to the emergency room and that he wasn't responding. Without a moment's hesitation I headed straight there.
To give a quick background story on this, and why this is significant, my grandfather has been through a LOT....he disproves the whole "nine lives" theory. The man has survived a broken back, two heart attacks, a stroke, a diabetic induced coma, multiple leg operations that have put him in a wheel chair, he's currently battling Alzheimer's and Dementia, and now has survived two seizures..so when my family was notified about what had happened...you can bet that we were all scared.
Thankfully he's better now. The entire time I was with him though I couldn't help but feel how odd it must have been for people working at the hospital to see so many people waiting to see one patient. The whole situation began to make me think about where I currently am in my life and what I want, how many people's lives have I impacted? Am I happy with where I am at right now? Or better yet...am I satisfied with this?
At the moment, I have absolutely no excuse or reason to complain, in fact I am happy and blessed beyond anything, I have a new apartment, new car, an amazing job close to where I live, I am near my family, and I have an amazing woman by my side. HOWEVER, I am not satisfied...let me explain.
I think it all started when I first moved into my new apartment, I went up three flights of stairs and was breathing like I just finished running a marathon...I was embarrassed, ashamed, but most of all I was angry...I remember looking at myself in the mirror and asking myself a question that I think a lot of people start asking themselves before a big life change "WHAT AM I GOING TO DO TO CHANGE THIS?"
Immediately I started looking up different diets, workouts, and finally found the right programs to help me start getting to where I want to be. Two months later, I'm in a lot better shape, and more productive at work, BUT still not satisfied and kind of frustrated that I can't push myself further right now.
I'm at a point in my life where I can't help but realize I have the potential to do and be so much more and it's frustrating because there is no fast track to get there, it's taking things step by step and having an unrivaled work ethic in everything I do. It's like having something within your grasp but you just can't get to it...
However, this takes me to the whole point of why I'm writing all of this in the first place...HAPPINESS.
While I was in the middle of my run the other night, one of my childhood best friend's called me to tell me something important...that he was happy for the first time in years! Weird know but just listen...
A few years ago he unfortunately lost his mother when she was hit by a drunk driver. His entire world shattered...he started suffering a lot from depression and anger as a result...and since then has been struggling to actually be happy...until that phone call.
He has been offered a really good job opportunity that would require him to move, but, after a weekend in Georgia for a big music festival he came back and did a lot of self-reflection and is now realizing how happier he is with his life and that he may not even want to move.
Now the thing him and I talked about wasn't that the music festival was the sole reason he was happier, it was what he discovered, the environment of happiness he was put in and the affect it had on him. While it took him awhile to get accustomed to it, he eventually joined in on the fun and began being happy again. Even more now, he took that same happy energy and brought it back with him to Connecticut where he told me: "I was dancing at 8am on my friend's porch with no music"....this is the kind of stuff you only hear about in movies or from a Kevin Hart joke.
He realized that he didn't necessarily want a life where he's rolling in money but rather where he's happy and content with himself and everyone around him, hence why now he's reconsidering his offer.
This mentality goes against the way I was raised since my whole life my family has struggled financially and I couldn't get the thought out of my head ever since I was little: "If only we had the money..." While money was a bigger motivator for me to do well it wasn't the only one, I still have a lot of goals, like making a big impact on the world and trying to get more minds involved in STEM.
Anyways, after he heard everything I'm going through and what my current ambitions are he reminded me of something that I think a lot of us, especially in my circle of friends who are all very driven and ambitious need to hear. We need to be able to stop being so "GO GO GO" and remember to enjoy the little things on our journey to our dreams.
I'll never forget what he said to me: "Clemente you have the kind of focus where you will shut out the whole world to the point where people get concerned about you. You don't just desire perfection for whatever you're pursuing, you aim to get one step above it, and it's awesome but you need to remember to enjoy time with everyone around you and comeback down to earth." And especially after nearly losing my grandfather I think its about time I try to connect more with those around me and appreciate my time with them even more.
The thing to always remember and the main thing that I want everyone to take away from this is to take time to enjoy your life and those around you, cause you may never know when those people or relationships may be gone, and just as important, make sure that you spread positive energy to those around you...you never know what battles people in your daily life may be facing and the impact a few simple words from you could have.
And one of the last things I will say is for those of you struggling to find direction or your passion. Ask yourself this: What can you do with your time that is important? What activity or kind of work makes you forget to eat? But most importantly, what makes you happy? Truly take time to think and reflect about this, it may help prevent you from being stuck in a job you hate.
If anything that I've written so far has impacted you or if you know someone who you think needs to read this, please share and pass it on, I want to impact as many lives as possible!
For now, I can't say I will have a set time when I post up more of these blogs but I can say to expect more as I continue chasing my dreams! Thank you for reading!
I had that moment this week after I got a call from my mom letting me know that my Grandfather was being taken to the emergency room and that he wasn't responding. Without a moment's hesitation I headed straight there.
To give a quick background story on this, and why this is significant, my grandfather has been through a LOT....he disproves the whole "nine lives" theory. The man has survived a broken back, two heart attacks, a stroke, a diabetic induced coma, multiple leg operations that have put him in a wheel chair, he's currently battling Alzheimer's and Dementia, and now has survived two seizures..so when my family was notified about what had happened...you can bet that we were all scared.
Thankfully he's better now. The entire time I was with him though I couldn't help but feel how odd it must have been for people working at the hospital to see so many people waiting to see one patient. The whole situation began to make me think about where I currently am in my life and what I want, how many people's lives have I impacted? Am I happy with where I am at right now? Or better yet...am I satisfied with this?
At the moment, I have absolutely no excuse or reason to complain, in fact I am happy and blessed beyond anything, I have a new apartment, new car, an amazing job close to where I live, I am near my family, and I have an amazing woman by my side. HOWEVER, I am not satisfied...let me explain.
I think it all started when I first moved into my new apartment, I went up three flights of stairs and was breathing like I just finished running a marathon...I was embarrassed, ashamed, but most of all I was angry...I remember looking at myself in the mirror and asking myself a question that I think a lot of people start asking themselves before a big life change "WHAT AM I GOING TO DO TO CHANGE THIS?"
Immediately I started looking up different diets, workouts, and finally found the right programs to help me start getting to where I want to be. Two months later, I'm in a lot better shape, and more productive at work, BUT still not satisfied and kind of frustrated that I can't push myself further right now.
I'm at a point in my life where I can't help but realize I have the potential to do and be so much more and it's frustrating because there is no fast track to get there, it's taking things step by step and having an unrivaled work ethic in everything I do. It's like having something within your grasp but you just can't get to it...
However, this takes me to the whole point of why I'm writing all of this in the first place...HAPPINESS.
While I was in the middle of my run the other night, one of my childhood best friend's called me to tell me something important...that he was happy for the first time in years! Weird know but just listen...
A few years ago he unfortunately lost his mother when she was hit by a drunk driver. His entire world shattered...he started suffering a lot from depression and anger as a result...and since then has been struggling to actually be happy...until that phone call.
He has been offered a really good job opportunity that would require him to move, but, after a weekend in Georgia for a big music festival he came back and did a lot of self-reflection and is now realizing how happier he is with his life and that he may not even want to move.
Now the thing him and I talked about wasn't that the music festival was the sole reason he was happier, it was what he discovered, the environment of happiness he was put in and the affect it had on him. While it took him awhile to get accustomed to it, he eventually joined in on the fun and began being happy again. Even more now, he took that same happy energy and brought it back with him to Connecticut where he told me: "I was dancing at 8am on my friend's porch with no music"....this is the kind of stuff you only hear about in movies or from a Kevin Hart joke.
He realized that he didn't necessarily want a life where he's rolling in money but rather where he's happy and content with himself and everyone around him, hence why now he's reconsidering his offer.
This mentality goes against the way I was raised since my whole life my family has struggled financially and I couldn't get the thought out of my head ever since I was little: "If only we had the money..." While money was a bigger motivator for me to do well it wasn't the only one, I still have a lot of goals, like making a big impact on the world and trying to get more minds involved in STEM.
Anyways, after he heard everything I'm going through and what my current ambitions are he reminded me of something that I think a lot of us, especially in my circle of friends who are all very driven and ambitious need to hear. We need to be able to stop being so "GO GO GO" and remember to enjoy the little things on our journey to our dreams.
I'll never forget what he said to me: "Clemente you have the kind of focus where you will shut out the whole world to the point where people get concerned about you. You don't just desire perfection for whatever you're pursuing, you aim to get one step above it, and it's awesome but you need to remember to enjoy time with everyone around you and comeback down to earth." And especially after nearly losing my grandfather I think its about time I try to connect more with those around me and appreciate my time with them even more.
The thing to always remember and the main thing that I want everyone to take away from this is to take time to enjoy your life and those around you, cause you may never know when those people or relationships may be gone, and just as important, make sure that you spread positive energy to those around you...you never know what battles people in your daily life may be facing and the impact a few simple words from you could have.
And one of the last things I will say is for those of you struggling to find direction or your passion. Ask yourself this: What can you do with your time that is important? What activity or kind of work makes you forget to eat? But most importantly, what makes you happy? Truly take time to think and reflect about this, it may help prevent you from being stuck in a job you hate.
If anything that I've written so far has impacted you or if you know someone who you think needs to read this, please share and pass it on, I want to impact as many lives as possible!
For now, I can't say I will have a set time when I post up more of these blogs but I can say to expect more as I continue chasing my dreams! Thank you for reading!
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