The Difference Between Consuming and Growing

“Living life to the fullest” is an inherited cliche. What does it really mean though?  How do we live life to the fullest?

Does it mean consuming more than anyone else? Grab the drink. Grab the thrill. Grab whatever feels good right now because tomorrow might not show up.

Confusing depth with speed means racing through life collecting moments like cheap souvenirs, only to wake up at forty wondering why we feel empty. The hangover fades. The credit card bill arrives. The relationships we burned through don’t call anymore.

That’s not a life lived fully. That’s just a fast track to burn out and regrets.

Real happiness isn’t about how much we can consume. It’s about how much we can grow and how fulfilled we feel.

Here’s the truth we don’t like to sit with: nobody knows what’s next. That’s the deal. We don’t get a chapter list. We don’t get a warning before the plot twists.

Uncertainty should wake us up instead of distract us with the quick ‘wins’ of immediate gratification. It should make us ask the hard question nobody wants to answer: If this is it, what am I actually building?

Realizing your potential is a slow, deliberate and ultimately fulfilling journey.

It’s the book you write when you’d rather watch a movie. The career you build when you’d rather call in sick. The relationship you nurture when walking away would be easier. It’s a long game played in a world obsessed with quick ‘wins’.

Here are some tips on how to grow instead of consume:

1. Keep a daily journal. Notice the things that energize you versus the things that deplete your energy. Have two-column pages on which you record your observations.
2. Observe other people’s behavior with the intention of finding what you can learn from them – dos and don’ts.
3. Cultivate a network of allies instead of an army of enemies. It is better to be trusted because you helped instead of despised because you caused harm.
4. Stop comparing yourself to others. Invest your energy on building your capabilities rather than waste your energy putting others down.  
5. In your daily journal have another two-columns in which you write: What am I proud of today and What am I grateful for today – it slowly builds your self-esteem.
6. Create your personal “Wall of Fame”. Fill it with images and quotes of who you want to become. Deliberate dreaming transforms into your realities. 

So maybe the question isn’t “What can I get right now?”  Maybe it’s “What am I becoming?”

Invest in the person you’ll be in ten years, not just the mood you’re in tonight. Because the next chapter is unwritten. And when you finally turn the page, you want to look back and see something you built.  Not just something you used.

About Author

Fay Niewiadomski

I awaken leaders to purposefully discern the best way forward, with such clarity, that they find within themselves the courage, wisdom, and compassion to do what they never dared to do before.

I’ve been privileged to work closely with C-level officers, presidents, ministers, global chairpersons, diplomats, board members, senior business and political leaders, and their teams to successfully navigate complex, high-stakes situations and make sound business and personal decisions resulting in profound and lasting change.

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