At 39 Dan Schulman was president of AT&T’s core consumer long distance business when he quit his job.
In an interview for the New York Times, he reflected, “My view was not so much that leaving was a risk. I actually thought, it’s more risky to stand still.”
Today Schulman is President and CEO of PayPal.
Author Anais Nin is famous for writing: “And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
But “to blossom” doesn’t mean that we have to quit jobs, get divorced, or reinvent our lives. It could simply mean taking action where once we felt paralyzed.
Simply put, the opposite of standing still is being in motion.
So what does being in motion look like? That depends entirely on you. It might mean:
- Taking on a new project that is outside of your comfort zone
- Speaking up when others are silent
- Saying “yes” without knowing the “how”
- Going solo to an event or the movies
- Trying out a new hobby or sport
The secret is not to compare your “motion” to anyone else’s.
For every amazing bike ride I do, there are people who are doing even more amazing bike rides. For every one of my accomplishments, there is someone who has accomplished even more.
We can only compare our motion today to our motion yesterday.
Am I standing still today or am I taking new actions, becoming a bigger, better, bolder version of myself? What am I doing today that I wasn’t brave enough to do yesterday?
It’s you today vs. you yesterday.