There has been a chunk of wood and a set of 4 cheap wood carving tools in my closet since 2011. Fresh out of school I bought these at a craft store, thinking I’d finally have time to learn how to carve like my grandparents. But 2011 turned into 2012 which turned into 2013 and I never did find the time to use them.
Since I’ve been working on consolidating my two closets of craft supplies down to one, I asked myself if I should just get rid of this carving kit. But I couldn’t. Partially because the stuff was brand new and partially because I still somehow believe that my future self will have the time to try out wood carving.
Meet my amazing future self
My amazing future self will:
…She will be able to save more money for my long-term goals. I don’t need to save much now since she will be able to easily save more money for travel and retirement.
…She will eat healthy and will work out 5 days per week… she will probably be shredded. I already ate a donut at the office this morning, but that’s ok because she will make up for it tomorrow.
…She will be able to finish the rest of today’s To Do list plus my future To Do list (which is great because I can go and re-watch Wonder Woman instead of finishing my daily tasks).
…She will host parties that will use the nice plates, silverware, and crystal pitcher (the one I have never used and is still inside of the wedding gift box). So I should hold onto these items I rarely use.
…She will have the time to try out all the activities I’m interested in like wood carving, drywall art, and quilting. So I should buy the supplies now so that I’m prepared when the time comes.
…She will make time for education. She is an avid reader that knows Chinese, Spanish and ASL fluently. It is going to take a long time to learn these but she’ll have plenty of time for this after the holidays.
Aspiration
It is great to aspire to be amazing. In fact, I bet it would be difficult to become more amazing without some expectation that it is possible to be greater in the future.
However, being overly optimistic about your future abilities can cause you to:
*Buy things you end up not using
*Keep clutter in your house
*Procrastinate your tasks
*Delay getting in shape
*Watch tv instead of learning
*Not save enough for retirement
The Solution
Since this is something I struggle with, I can’t really give you a solution. But I can tell you that I am working on being more kind to my future self.
-If I can do the task today so that my amazing future self can focus on better projects, I should do it today.
-If I can get a head start on getting in shape, saving money and decluttering the house, I should do it today.
The truth is, I am always going to want to be improving so my amazing future self’s plate is already full. It really isn’t fair to expect her to do so much so that I can be a couch potato today…a couch potato that can’t even carve wood!
For discussion:
- Are you holding onto items that you have never used but don’t want to get rid of because your amazing future self will use them?
- What activities does your amazing future self do that you don’t?
- Are you placing too much on your future self?