The Great Constriction
Action Brings Freedom
Welcome to the free edition of YouTopian Journey, a Substack featured publication. Each week I will be sharing unique wisdom that can help you in the daily battles that we must all fight in the game of life. This week we discuss the great constriction.
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THE GREAT CONSTRICTION
“[I]n nooks all over the earth sit men who are waiting, scarcely knowing in what way they are waiting, much less that they are waiting in vain. Occasionally the call that awakens– that accident which gives the “permission to act — comes too late, when the best youth and strength for action has already been used up by sitting still; and many have found to their horror when they ‘leaped up’ that their limbs had gone to sleep and their spirit had become to heavy. ‘It is too late,’ they said to themselves, having lost their faith in themselves and henceforth forever useless.”-Friedrich Nietzsche
Time is passing.
Summer is coming to an end. Schools are starting the fall semester. Vacations are nothing more than a memory and in most cases, a future fantasy. 2022 grinds closer and closer to its terminus.
And yet so many have little to show for it.
Sure, they may have gone somewhere, received some certificate, did something of merit.
But what have they really changed?
Is their world any different?
What about you?
What have you changed?
Is your life any better today than it was six months ago?
The media talks of the great resignation but what they should be reporting on is the great constriction! The narrowing of our time, our opportunities, our energy and ability to achieve our goals and make our dreams a reality.
Anyone can resign from their job and most should as they are not jobs that are worth even working. But everyone should be fighting a battle that they know is inherently meaningful and essentially vital to their future.
The battle for their time. The temporal conflagration that will consume them, one way or another.
Many can’t see it, especially in the present moment. They refuse to do so. But the regrets will come.
They always do.
You may be able to flee but you won’t be able to hide from them.
What will you regret? What will you look back on with shame? What will haunt you the most?
You never approached that potential investor or partner or co-founder with that idea.
You never did something creative, either starting a channel or a newsletter or simply putting your thoughts onto paper.
You never took a chance on that attractive person you saw from across the room.
You never stepped up when you knew you should have.
You never climbed the mountain.
You never took the risk.
You never faced the challenges.
You never sought the horizon.
You never sailed to a new shore.
You ignored the Daemon as it attempted to speak.
You silenced the Muse.
You threw yourself into the distractions and the drama.
You played it safe.
Until it was too late.
Too late to change.
Too late to boldly attack your goals.
Too late to make your dreams a reality.
Too late to use your time when it was plentiful.
And now time has run out.
Make no mistake, the great constriction tests us all. Now more than ever, when we are surrounded by distractions that beckon us with empty entertainment, satiety, and safety.
What can we do to escape the constriction? What can we do to survive it?
Would we even want to do so?
Because make no mistake, the constriction can be mitigated but it cannot be totally defeated. And in our culture which sees everything in black and white and victory and defeat, many only wish to battle if the possibility of victory is overwhelming.
The result?
Many don’t take up arms.
They wait.
They let their possibilities and potentialities grow narrower with each passing day.
Do not make this mistake, perhaps the greatest of our entire species. Endeavor to act now and see yourself as the heroic figure that you can become. I foresee you not as a hero because of what you may accomplish, but because you have the guts and the courage to go after it regardless of the risks.
And because you know that the clock is ticking.
“Life will not lengthen itself for a king’s command or a people’s favor. As it started out on its first day, so it will run, nowhere pausing or turning aside.”-Seneca
ACTION OVER CONSTRICTION
“An hour sometimes restores us the sum of many years losses.”-Publius Syrus
If you are an avid reader of this publication, you will no doubt realize that my constant theme is taking action.
Action over excuses.
Action over hesitation.
Action over doubts.
Action over everything and everyone.
Why is this the case?
Because it is through action that things change. Not through hopes and dreams, as important as they may be. And certainly not through fears and remaining idle. You can hope all you want for change, but life is limited and every moment matters.
Action is your best defense against the great constriction.
Yes, it may bring failure.
Yes, it may bring defeat.
And yes, it may not always cause events to work out in your favor.
But it is better than remaining idle. It is better than sitting still.
Doing nothing invariably leads to nothing but doing something may result in something.
And something given life, given reality, is infinitely more valuable than a vision that remains in your mind.
The YouTopian Journey is one such example.
With the pandemic raging and with no hope in sight, I set out to use my time wisely and create something that wasn’t only personally meaningful, but that could help others. Whereas the rest of society was complaining and binging whatever was trending, I sought something different. I sought to give life to my creation. It was through action that this came about.
Not by thinking.
Not by wishing.
But with action!
I had no experience with newsletters, blogging, or content. I taught myself everything. I marketed it, experimented, failed time and time again, but kept going. I can proudly say that it was all worth it and continues to be each and every week. YouTopian Journey opened many doors for me.
What can your projects do for you?
What can you act on that could have beneficial results that you can’t begin to fathom?
Only you can find out.
Only you can know.
And only you can beat back the great constriction.
Get to it!
“I learned that every mortal will taste death, but only some will taste life.”-Rumi
UP NEXT
This issue leads to our first multi-issue special for YouTopian Journey.
The battle is on.
In the coming issues, we will discuss how to live with a sense of urgency, how to battle distraction, and ultimately how to use your time to live a more fulfilling life.
If you aren’t a paid subscriber, there is no better time than now to upgrade. You won’t want to miss this. The knowledge will be invaluable to you on your journey (and the art will be pretty epic as well).
For the price of a latte, you have the option to change your life for the better and support independent writing and art.
What are you waiting for? Upgrade to a paid subscription and upgrade your life today!
Shaun
P.S.-This issue could change someone’s life. Why not share it?
Starting a newsletter this year changed my life for the better. I'm much poorer for it (at least for the time being), but I can't remember the last time I was this happy with myself and my life. Just the very act of doing something changes everything, whether in a material, psychological, or metaphysical sense (or all three).
I also think it's a remarkable synchronicity that we're both running a concurrent series on time!