MEHMET AKSEL
Last week, I was chatting with my sister-in-law at dinner.
While talking about our domestic and foreign investments, the institute, the restaurant, Istanbul, Moscow and Lisbon, she uttered this magical sentence: “Isn’t it amazing to wake up with excitement, day after day?”
This is what usually happens with me: when conversations are taking place, the things people say either go in one ear and out the other equally quickly, or a word or a sentence suddenly does a U-turn and gets lodged in my mind.
Of course, no one took notice, but for me, the meal was over there and then.
From that moment onwards, following dinner, on the road in the car, at home in the shower or in bed, and perhaps even in my dreams… Those who wake up with excitement in the morning, those who don’t, and why they don’t wake up with excitement, what they should do instead, what can be done for them, what could be written, why do those who wake up with excitement do so, why can’t some people never wake up with excitement, what am I doing… I was obsessed.
I had planned to rest this weekend: no work, no entertainment, no cars, no food, no friends, no sports, no writing, no computers, and no hobbies, just rest. I didn’t even want to listen to music. Maybe some reading (I didn’t want that either, but my list is overflowing with books), and a little bit of ‘empty’ television.
I have a book that is light in weight but heavy in value, I would really recommend it. ‘Meditations: Thoughts to Myself’ from İşbank Cultural Publications. It’s a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, nicknamed the Philosopher Emperor, who started writing during an expedition in AD 170, and where he illustrates his ‘inner world’.
I can’t really rest when I read a book or watch TV. I have to do nothing, but then people who see me looking into space think I’m ‘crazy’.
The things I read about in books, the things I see or hear on TV often make me think further, and sometimes I don’t even want to think about these things.
I recently acquired a new habit: I wake up in the morning, I ask my phone what time it is out loud, and depending on the answer I receive, I listen to myself for almost 20 minutes to half an hour without opening my eyes.
Anyway, where was I? The book.
Having finished the book in no time, I thought I’d check out the newly released movies and TV series.
During the first days of the pandemic, Teri and I had watched the first season of this decent TV series, ‘Ozark’; I realized that its new season was out; so I said let’s take a look at it just to clear my head.
Just then, another sentence was uttered in the show and I was in trouble.
“[God] built me smart enough to know how f*cked up my life is. But not quite smart enough to haul my ass out of it,” said the girl to the other
The best situation summary I’ve heard recently.
Of course, there are those who aren’t aware of the first part of that sentence, but there is not much one can do about those anyway.
And now for the latter part of the sentence, I mean, the addressees of that part.
Those who are enslaved by their habits, those who are afraid of changing direction, those who steer clear from excitement, those who always err on the side of caution and not even take small risks, and of course those who waste the few days they have in life.
Or those who always blame it on the lack of money, the lack of time, the crises, the disasters or the various other misfortunes, namely, those who always find another culprit.
Or those who miss out on the beauties of life, who spend all their time saving or investing money for the ‘insurance that will be needed in the future’ that is uncertain.
Perhaps the blame is on the game called Monopoly that we played as children.
I feel like I can hear some of you going, “easy to say, but not so easy to do”.
For some of us (e.g. me), these may be quick decisions, but for some of us, it may be necessary to digest the idea for a bit and to extend the plans for achieving whatever the objective may be over time.
I’m of such a mentality that I can make a decision at any moment, dream big, and build the necessary structure and the necessary team in my head, before actually setting it up and patiently walking towards the goal, at any cost.
But you may be different and rather than thinking in big leaps, you can start by saying “where am I now and what have I got” and always think about the next appropriate step with “so what can I do next”; I don’t know.
I’m sure there are millions of different combinations and everyone can find their own way of action.
Perhaps each new step will motivate you and lead you to the next with even more determination, and the changes could start from there.
Perhaps no matter what you do, and no matter how hard you try, it really can’t happen.
But when you finally look back asking “Did I do everything I could?” the answer “Yes, I did”, can be the best of outcomes.
That’s called living, after all.
If you’re afraid of living, I can’t say much to that…
I can take decisions easily, others might find it more difficult; perhaps I don’t have a sense of risk, maybe some people are more reserved, but none of these differences mean that we can’t do or try to do the things we want.
I think success is knowing what you want to do, setting a goal and moving towards it. Whatever the result, believe me, you will also be happy in the process.
And you don’t really have to look for something you are passionate about, just reflect your passion on what you do.
My father had a saying that I love very much, and it was, “Whether you think you can make it or you can’t, in the end, you’ll be right either way”.
Please remember, it’s never too late.
Forget what the good-for-nothing people around you say.
Think about what I wrote today and wake up with excitement tomorrow morning and start changing something.
Congratulations:
Hats off to Sébastien Loeb. See what a human being can accomplish, and then read my article from 04.02.2021 again, with patience and without being angry.