Be the storyteller of your life. Create it and don’t passively consume from others. You have the power of your reality.
The times have changed in the times of corona-virus. It is hard to be optimistic about all this. But it has created more high agency in individuals.
Don’t get me wrong, the first weeks (and months) were gloomy. I felt hopeless. As trips and birthday parties canceled, I kept falling into a victim mentality. Then the unthinkable. I lost my job. I kept reading headlines and turning the other way. I fell into a blaming state of pointing my finger at the world. COVID caused me to lose a piece of my identity. My sense of belonging in the world. I naively believed I was secure.
This has been a wake-up call. To stop sitting on the sidelines and actually be in the woman in the arena. There are opportunities everywhere to find that fulfillment. Nothing will be spoon-fed on a gold platter. Stop expecting it to. If you want to do something, you need to make it happen. Entrepreneurial people are self-starters. Paul Graham describes a good startup founder as one with a high agency who is relentlessly resourceful. They follow their intuition and curiosity in hopes it doesn’t lead them astray. If it does, they get back on the saddle to experiment again.
Don’t be a victim and watch life sail by. If you want to be a daily writer, start writing. If you want to compete in races, start running. If you want to find another great job, start applying. If you want to feel more connected, start reaching out. Those are the things I have decided to be more active in my life. You can do the same. It is within your power to take control and be of high agency. Your future self won’t regret it.
Thank you to George Mack for his tweet thread, and for Tim Ferriss and Eric Weinstein for talking about this idea.