David is my third son. My son, John, is a senior in high school; Josh is a college freshman. David has everything to look forward to. In no time he'll be crawling, then walking, then wrestling with me. In a few years, he'll begin the long journey of schooling, being taught what I learned and more. I can imagine him in high school, dating girls and then off to college. What might he choose to study? Chiropractic comes to mind.
Sorry, David. You can't roll over yet and I already have you receiving your college diploma.
But it strikes me that as he lives his first 25 years with all there is to learn and do, I'll be living my next 25. What will I do with that quarter of a century? What will be my new experiences and challenges? Do my next 25 years hold any less potential than his?
The first month of 1999 has already passed. But regardless of what year it is, how old you are, or how many years you've been a chiropractor, you have a potential that is waiting for you to embrace.
The problem is, we tend to stagnate. And depending on how long you've been riding along your comfortable route, it seems harder to set out in a different direction. Envision the next 25 years as "more of the same" isn't inspiring.
This is a good point to throw in a couple of those motivational cliches about making the most of life:
- Carpe diem.
- Life is a banquet, but most people are starving to death.
- You only go around once (unless you're Hindu).
- Today is the first day of the rest of your life.
Choose your own hackneyed homily, or perhaps give life to a new one, but whatever it takes to motivate you, do something with the time you've been given. Look ahead five, 10, and 20 years. What do you see for yourself, your family, your practice and for chiropractic?
Take a few quite moments to think about your future. That in itself can be a significant exercise. Look at your goals. What do you really want to do in the next few years? Be sure to set a goal for every area of your life.
Life doesn't just happen. You have to participate. Make it the best it can be.
If you think of some worthy goals for chiropractic, I invite you to share them with the profession on my "Talk Back" forum on our website (chiroweb.com). The specific page address is:
http://www.chiroweb.com/cgi-bin/forum/romf.cgi
Post your thoughts here so we all have the chance to share them.
Thank you for taking the time to make life better.
Click here for more information about Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD(hc), FICC(h), Publisher.