Dear Younger Fred… this was never you...
Until it was.
This week, you'll embark on your sixth annual charity ride for BC Cancer. 🚴❤️
And it'll make you think about how this all started.
Years ago, your former colleague Scott Peace asked you to ride with him.
"Fred, let's do it together. Why not? You're a young guy. Get out there, get active and raise some money for charity at the same time."
There was only one problem…
You weren't a road biker. 😂
Actually, you didn't even own any type of bike.
You didn't really have the money to go out and buy one...you know those fancy ones...
You didn't have the gear.
You didn't know what you were doing.
And if you really wanted to…
you could've come up with every reason in the world not to do it.
And honestly?
They would've been pretty good reasons.
But you said yes anyway.
We all know that feeling...
Someone suggests something completely outside your comfort zone and immediately your brain responds:
"That's not me."
"I don't do that."
"I'm not that kind of person."
But sometimes "that's not me" really means…
"that's not me yet."
Remember the law of inertia?
An object at rest tends to stay at rest.
Turns out humans can be pretty good at that too. 😂
Getting started is HARD.
But then something happens...
You say yes.
You find a bike.
You go for that first ride.
Then another...
And slowly, that little snowball starts rolling downhill.
You gain traction...
Then momentum...
And eventually, something you once said "wasn't me" becomes part of who you are.
Six years later, here you are.
Still riding.
Still raising money.
Still saying yes. ❤️
And it makes you wonder…
How many things in life do we never become simply because we decided too early that they "weren't us"?
Younger Fred…
you weren't born a financial planner.
You weren't born a husband.
You weren't born a father.
You weren't born someone who trains hard or rides a bike for hours.
None of those things were "you"…
until they WERE.
So the next time that little voice says:
"This isn't me."
Don't be so quick to believe it.
Take a chance on yourself.
Say YES!
Be bad at something for a while.
Give yourself enough time to change.
Because maybe we don't discover who we are…
maybe we build who we are.
One small decision.
One uncomfortable yes.
One ride at a time. 🚴❤️
And in my opinion…
that's how you create the destiny of a good life.
Baaaaam — that's it for today.
See you next Thursday!
Stay curious,
Fred
