I can’t wait until I retire so I can travel.

I can’t wait until my project is finished so I can spend time doing the things I enjoy.

I can’t wait until I get promoted so I can relax.

…

Often when I catch myself in this type of thought process (I can’t wait until ___ so I can ___), I find that the narrative is made-up. I typically have the ability to do the thing I want without waiting for whatever I think is stopping me.

College and home renovations are two of the clearest examples.

We think that the ability to live a free life and do the things we want is some fantasy that we can only realize later in life. But if most people reflect on their college days, they’ll see that they did just that with nearly no income and no status.

Similarly, I’ve caught myself a few times looking forward to the completion of big home renovations so I’ll have more time to do other things I want during nights and weekends.

But if I’m honest with myself, there’s no reason why I couldn’t do those things much sooner.

Sure it might push back the project completion date, but most of these types of deadlines are arbitrary anyway. It’s rarely worth being miserable for a few months just to rush to the finish day when we think things will finally slow down.

-Brandon