[deluxe edition] Commit before you're ready
[deluxe edition] Commit before you're ready
against temporary living
This is a deluxe edition of a popular essay I wrote on commitment earlier this year.
The core idea: the right things are not just found, but made. Co-created in an environment of commitment.
“The deepest bonds can only be forged within the safety of lifelong commitment. A person or place will only reveal themselves to you when they’re not afraid you’ll run away.”
Besides an improved rewrite of the piece, deluxe essays include:
an audio reading from me
special commentary on my journey writing the piece and why I think a lot about commitment
behind the scenes look at my process (research, outlines, early drafts, cutting room floor)
Plus, three of my best photos from this past Summer with the story behind each.
It offers a closer view of how I write, how I think, and how I live.
The original edition of this essay was published on March 23rd, 2024, and is accessible to all. You can read it here.
If you would like full access to all my work, consider becoming a patron.
"Men did not love Rome because she was great. She was great because they had loved her."
— G.K. Chesterton
One of the biggest fallacies about commitment is that there is a right person/city/career out there, just waiting for you to find it. And once you do, you'll know it’s right and suddenly be ready to commit.
But, great things aren't just out there waiting for you. They are created. They are built.
In the commitment equation, people overestimate the importance of finding the right thing and underestimate the necessity of making it the right thing through their commitment.
You can weigh options, evaluate and analyze, retreat to reason and rationale, but no pros and cons list will help conjure the courage to leap. It's never a logical thing. Love and friendship and new ventures—all of life's most magnificent adventures—are not creations of the intellect. You've got to jump off the cliff and build your wings on the way down.
One must be a little reckless in order to create anything reverent.
Deep down, I know this. I know I have to commit and resolutely believe what I choose is right for me, despite all the other potential options.
Still, I can’t shake this fear that I’ll live my whole life waiting for it to start.
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