Taking Potential As Far As You Can On Your Own
I was thinking about potential again recently. Living up to one's potential is important. Blazing your own trail, it's a good thing. But even if you push your potential as far as you can on your own, is the process really all that fun without a crew experiencing it with you?
I'll use some examples. I started a new basketball league tonight. I realized quickly that although I was in marathon shape as of a month ago, I am clearly not in basketball shape. I struggled getting up and down the court and didn't have the touch around the basket. But those things will come back to me with time, and I am confident that I could elevate my game back to the level it once was. I have the potential to be the guy whose squad runs the court for an entire Saturday morning at the rec center. The guy on the team that doesn't lose. If I tried hard enough, I could be that again.
But when I thought about the effort that it would take to get back to that level and what I would end up getting out of it, and I realized that it wouldn't be that fun unless I was kicking it out to Sundino for a three balls, and Dirty was diving on the floor to get rebounds. It just wouldn't.
I could also make better use of my guitar and vocal skills. Although I might not ever be in a famous band, I am confident I could be in a relatively successful band that plays shows around LA if I really became dedicated. But then I thought about it. Unless I am rocking out on power chords while TC is rifling through basslines next to me, and we are belting out songs about every girl we ever knew, then would I really enjoy it that much? I don't know if I would.
I moved to a new pad in Playa Del Rey. It's a big house close to the beach, and my roommates are all cool people. The party potential for this house is high; we've already had one big party and it was a big success. But honestly, unless Grayson is pouring sugar on partygoers with his Coolio record on the mantle in the background, I don't know if a party at my place in Playa could ever compare.
I have the potential to be extremely successful in life. At times, I feel like there isn't anything I can't do, and I feel like I have taken small steps in proving that. But who am I proving it to? Myself? Maybe. But maybe I'm not proving it to anyone. Because at the end of the day, it's not about individual success. It's about success with people, success with your crew, that's what makes the achievement rewarding.
And then again, maybe those interactions were for that place and for that time. It's different now, we're just meant to look back, then put our head down and charge ahead on our own. Because as Tom Petty said, "You can look back, babe, but it's best not to stare."
posted by Toastmaster @ 10:47 PM
11 Comments:
One of the great things about the capacity to look back...is that it means you've moved forward. And not being able to say you've moved forward would probably hurt more than being able to look back...It proves the saying true "The only constant in life is change".
You have no potential. There I said it, bam! Done. Get back to work, Marc
I disagree, Jules. Think about some of the people we grew up with. Have they moved forward? No. And my guess is that they look back on those old school days as being the best days of their life. Sure, some people are moving forward, but others are just moving on. And I don't know if that's always a good thing.
I disagree, Marc. Of course some of the people we grew up with haven't moved forward, and I don't think that is a good thing, and I don't think you do either. The way I look at it, people move on because they have to. People move forward to bigger and better things because we grow and learn. If you constantly look back at the past as the best time of your life, then you don't really have much to look forward to do we? Of course looking back fondly on memories is great, but if you don't continue to do things that make you happy that you will look back on at a later time, then what are we doing?
That's a great question....what ARE we doing?! Think about it. All of us can ask ourselves that question. And most of us don't have a good answer. Are we doing this for us? Or because we feel like this is what we are supposed to do? Or because we have nothing better to do? Because I don't recall asking myself that question in those days.
Good points. I never really thought about it, but you are right. We never asked ourselves these questions when we were younger. But I guess that's just what comes with growing up. I think we've learned that time is more precious so we need to start accomplishing things that are important to us, and that is something different for all of us.
Who the fuck cares when the Cubs are in first place.
But is any of this stuff really THAT important to us? I'll answer for you. No.
haha Pauly get out of here.
Marc, you can't say that all these things aren't important. Maybe they aren't to you, but you can't say that for everyone.
You know what I'm saying. I'm not speaking for the whole world, just an overall generalization. You have said it to me.
I know what you mean. It's okay to admit I'm smarter than you though, you have said it before.
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