Depression and 'Will Power'

“The key to life is on a treadmill. I’ll just watch and learn while your chest burns. Because if you say you are going to run three miles and you only run two, I don’t ever have to worry about losing something to you.” ~ Will Smith

Will Smith's Interview: Will Power

Over the vacation, I learned to use my new scroll saw, and broke a blade in the process. But this isn't the story I wanted to tell in this post...
Over the last three weeks, I've tried reading up on Modern Architecture History, finishing the Louis Kahn: In The Realm of Architecture biography, and a simple book for students about the design process. But all the while, I had locked myself in my room, lights dimmed, hours late and human interaction a galaxy away. All this did was cause depression.

Yes, depression is a real thing.

The only remedy that worked was getting off my bed and onto the floor to get some exercise (doing push-ups). The other part of the remedy was to get some sunshine.

I went from a 190 lbs, depressed, introvert, to a happier 187 lbs human with more energy and a lesser tendency to snack. And this realization to change my bad pattern came after I read the interview. It made me realize what giving 110% really means.

To me, it means giving up: watching TV shows; and rewarding myself every 5 minutes, or whenever my brain said, "GIMME CANDY!"
It means going the extra mile- plus three more miles- because I'm in this for the long run. I'm here to succeed and my competitors are only giving it 90-100%. Whether it's true or not, it's still worth it to make believe that all that needs to be done is putting in the extra time and not just stopping with 'Ok'. To be at the top, you need to go beyond 'Ok', you need to be 'better than ok', its better to be tired at the end of a race than to come in second and say, "That's ok. At least I didn't come in third."
But that's the point I want to make: Don't settle for second-best. BE THE BEST.
And if you're not the best yet, there's something to yearn for. BECOME THE BEST and then go beyond that.

You can always push the limit. I've done that with rules, because discipline and authority have, for some time, been an issue. I've had a need to test boundaries to know my limits, but that was on a two-dimensional plane. There's a third dimension that exists above the ground you stand on currently. All you have to do is climb so you can get the exercise and eventually reach the sunshine and fresh air that one needs so desperately to avoid depression. To achieve that 110%!

People say to give it your 'all'.

But I want to tell you, and myself, "Give it your all PLUS!"


Good luck to all, dear reader ;)
Thanks for reading.
~ArchiTalmud