Confessions of a Future-Dweller
Why I’m learning to stop living in the future and start showing up for the "now."
I hope you’re having a good week.
It’s been a little quiet here on our publication, but not because we haven’t been writing. We have several drafts sitting open. We’ve just been refining them. Making them better before sending them out.
In truth, the last couple weeks have been busy for me with work deadlines and projects.
This month I was responsible for building a big presentation and delivering it to a team in our company.
In this post, I want to talk about it - not because the topic was groundbreaking, but because of what it forced me to confront.
Before we dive in, I want to say a quick thank you for sticking with us on this journey. And if you’re new here - welcome! It’s exciting to see this community growing.
The Presentation I Didn’t Feel Ready For
I work at a B2B company, and I was tasked with building and delivering a training on LinkedIn social selling.
I built the slide deck from scratch. Consolidated ideas from a book I was reading.
I spent hours refining it, preparing for questions, and anticipating feedback.
The presentation was set to be an hour and a half long (It took an hour).
But here’s the truth:
I like people.
I like conversation.
I like building connections.
But I am not naturally the guy who stands confidently in front of a group and presents ideas.
Not yet.
When the responsibility landed in my lap, I felt anxiety immediately:
What if I say something wrong?
What if I stumble?
What if my voice shakes?
What if they critique it?
What if I’m not as prepared as I think?
If you lean introverted, you know this feeling.
It’s not hatred of people.
It’s an internal pressure.
A Realization Under the Stars
The night before the presentation, I went outside to let my dogs out.
I looked up at the stars.
And I had a simple realization: I just need to take this one moment at a time.
I realized how often I live in the future.
I often catch myself:
Looking forward to being done.
Looking forward to being home.
Looking forward to the next event.
More often than not, I find myself living in the future and skipping the present moment - the place where my life is actually happening.
If you’re like me, you often find yourself thinking about what may or may not happen tomorrow, or what exciting new thing you get to do later in the week.
But when I was outside looking up at the stars and contemplating the day ahead, I realized that no matter how anxious I may be about tomorrow, I have only this moment. This moment is what matters.
Choosing Progress Over Perfection
I went into the presentation with one mindset: Be as good as you can right now.
Not perfect.
Not how my future self may give this presentation.
Not the polished version I hope to become.
Just the best version I can manage in this moment.
If I do my best in this moment, the next one improves.
If I put in the effort now, the future version of me benefits.
There is no value in running from opportunities that stretch you.
I could have said no.
I could have avoided it.
I could have stayed comfortable.
That would have hurt me far more than a shaky voice ever could.
The Evidence of Past Bravery
A few years ago I ran a small social media marketing agency.
It was just me and a couple team members.
To keep money flowing, I had to take sales calls.
I was terrified, introverted, and uncomfortable.
But I kept doing it.
Call after call and conversation after conversation.
Eventually, I became comfortable.
The same thing happened with social media videos I was creating.
The first time I put my face online, it felt unnatural.
Now?
It doesn’t bother me.
Every time I’ve leaned into discomfort instead of avoiding it, I’ve grown.
Every. Single. Time.
Just Do It
There’s something else tied to this.
On my keychain, I have a lanyard my brother bought before he passed away.
It’s a Nike keychain and it says three simple words: Just Do It.
Every time I get in my car, I see it.
And it hits differently now.
But not in some cliché motivational way.
What I have come to realize about life is:
You won’t regret pushing yourself.
You won’t regret stepping forward.
You won’t regret raising your hand.
You won’t regret trying.
You might feel uncomfortable, exposed, and anxious.
But you won’t regret growth.
Building the 10-Year Version of You
I want to speak on stages someday.
I want to build community.
I want to share ideas publicly.
But that doesn’t happen by avoiding the unfamiliar and saying no to the things that push me out of my comfort zone.
The version of myself that I desire to be, and am working toward being, says yes to the things that, ten years ago, I would have shrunken into a corner to avoid.
The reality is that this version of myself get’s built by taking one step at a time.
One moment at a time.
One presentation at a time.
If you’re facing something uncomfortable right now, whether it’s a conversation, a project, or a new opportunity, don’t run from it.
Just do it.
Take it one step at a time. Don’t focus on the future to attempt to avoid the discomfort of the now.
Just do it, because you won’t regret growth.