“The fates guide those who accept it, and hinder those who reject it.” - Cleanthes
In my quest to make the most out of my time alive, I’ve come to better understand that life really is just a series of moments.
Whether waiting in line for coffee, driving to work, hugging your friends, staring at the clouds, or sitting in the dentist’s chair - each counts as a moment in its own right.
Yet, so often do I catch myself trying to get through some of the less 'enjoyable' moments so I can reach the next, better ones.
Lately though, as I’ve been coming to terms with my own mortality and the fleeting nature of time, I’ve realised how much of my life would actually be passing me by if I spent it in this imagined future instead of the concrete present.
Some recent examples of unfavourable events this past month:
I had to go to Home Affairs a few times because my ID and driver’s license literally vanished over December.
With all of the usual greatest hits such as:
- systems being offline
- scanners not working
- endless queues
- indifferent staff
this would normally have been an exercise in frustration.
I’d be agitated, impatient, and desperate to ‘get this over with’ so I could move on to something better.
As if that wasn’t enough, I also realised I’d been neglecting my car’s maintenance, so I had to take it in. The bill grew every time the mechanic called.
Pair that with the ongoing load-shedding (power outages), and you’ve got yourself high-octane fuel for explosive outrage.
This usually results in the version of myself I know all too well: short-tempered, stuck in my head, and later realising I spent way too much time in a haze of agitation, completely missing what actually matters to me.
Something had to give, and if I know anything about mindset, it’s that if I don’t take control, emotion will.
Having read The Obstacle Is the Way, I’ve been trying to approach these kinds of challenges with a more optimistic mindset to see where there’s room to shift my perspective and actually enjoy the moments I have.
This led me to a conversation with ChatGPT, where I stumbled upon a very interesting concept: micro-adaptability.
At its core, micro-adaptability is about being mentally light on your feet, adjusting quickly when plans or circumstances change so you don’t disturb the emotion monster’s slumber.
By shifting your perspective and responses in real time, you can turn unpleasant moments into opportunities to practice calm, acceptance, and presence - even enjoyment and fun.
This method allows me to see Home Affairs as an opportunity to be grateful that I don't have to go there every day, the car as an investment into my safety and load-shedding as a means to explore hobbies that don't require electricity.
The truth, it seems, is that events themselves are neutral; it’s our interpretation that gives them meaning.
And if so much of life is shaped by mindset, then maybe we have more power than we think to rewrite the narrative and flip situations on their head.
This isn’t to say that shitty situations don’t exist, just that the key is to stay in motion - to be able to, at a moment’s notice, shift, dodge, side-step, pirouette and adapt to keep moving forward to make the most of all the moments you have.
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