When I was biking on Sunday, I encountered an old man on a bicycle. He had white hair and an old bicycle going slow, so I passed him without much thought. Fast forward much later, I was struggling to get over this hill, I was very tired after expending most of my energy. And who else did I see casually passing me? The old man, casually going the same constant low speed he always did. It instantly reminded me of the classic story of the tortoise and the hare, the slow but consistent progress of the tortoise beating out the quick hare that sprinted ahead in the beginning.

I think this can also be applied to life. Sometimes we feel like we’re being left behind. You see your friends and family members achieve great things and reach impressive milestones in their life. It can feel like you’re not where you thought you would be several years ago. But life works out differently for everyone, almost nobody’s life ever goes all according to plan. What’s important is you keep making progress, no matter how small. Make sure you’re closer to your goals than you were yesterday. 

Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t overextend yourself in the first hundred meters, all it’s gonna do is make you burn out faster. Actually, I take it back, life isn’t a race at all. There is no single parameter of success like a finish line, we all have our own goals, our own ideas of what life is all about. So don’t worry too much about running somebody else’s race, focus on yourself, and what you really want out of your life.