Don’t live a toothless life
Live now, not someday.
Vol. 8 | November 04, 2024
One quote
“I have led a toothless life. A toothless life. I have never bitten into anything. I was waiting. I was reserving myself for later on—and I have just noticed that my teeth have gone.”
— Jean-Paul Sartre
Two reflections
Deferred happiness syndrome
If you keep telling yourself, “I’ll finally do X when Y happens,” let me tell you: you’re f*cked.
This mindset—putting life on hold for some future, “better” version of you—is what’s called deferred happiness syndrome. I came across this concept recently thanks to
, and it hit hard:The common feeling that your life has not begun, that your present reality is a mere prelude to some idyllic future. This idyll is a mirage that’ll fade as you approach, revealing that the prelude you rushed through was in fact the one to your death.
It’s the expectation that “the best is yet to come,” that you’ll handle your real wants later, that things will be easier or better “soon.” Spoiler: that “good stuff” you’re waiting for? It never magically arrives.
Every time you say, “not yet” or “I’ll do it later,” you’re wasting the only perfect condition you have to start: now. Just starting is the perfect condition. Think of how many things you’ve held off and how often you keep doing it.
You say you love travel, but you’ll wait until work is less busy or until you can save for that house first. Keep waiting!
You say you want to paint or switch to a job that aligns with your passion for the environment, but you’re always “too busy right now.” Or that you’ll finally reach out to that person, reconnect with those friends “someday,” even though you’re dying to do it now. That “someday” slips away.
There’s no future better than the present. Make decisions. Don’t kid yourself—the same “you” who hasn’t done all the things you wanted to do isn’t going to magically change unless you do.
You’ll want this moment back
Think about it: thirty years from now, you’d probably give everything you own to come back to this moment—to be as strong, as healthy, as lucky, and as capable as you are right now.
Picture your future self with access to a time machine, landing here today. What would they do with this day? What would they do differently?
Most of us forget the one thing we actually know for sure: we’re going to die. And that’s terrifying. We don’t know how or when. Heaven? Hell? Just nothingness? Who knows? But what you can know, right now, is that you have today.
We don’t realise how incredible our lives—our present—already are. We get so used to our routines that we forget what we have right now is precious. Health, energy, time, a mom, a grandma, a dog... all of these fade eventually, but we hardly notice until they’re gone.
This moment, right now, is exactly where everything you’re looking for begins.
Don’t let your future self look back with regret over time wasted, over days spent putting off the life you wanted—the things you wanted to say, the walks you wanted to take.
Today, right now, is the perfect condition.
Getting personal
I’ve been feeling really lonely lately. I look around and see people trapped in their lives, and it’s like I’m a hamster sitting still while they run in their wheels.
They seem stuck in a loop, just ticking off the days without really living. They keep saying things like, “I should do this,” or “I’ll get to that when…” It blows my mind that so many are okay with not chasing the life they want.
Is it comfort? It feels like many would rather stick with what’s familiar, even if it’s just “fine.” Personally, I can’t stand average. Being average is just settling for ordinary.
Maybe their job isn’t terrible, the colleagues aren’t awful, or the salary is okay because “others have it worse.” But that’s the problem. This is where the Region-Beta Paradox comes in: people often stay in a state of feeling just fine because it feels safe.
They don’t act until things get really bad. If things are hard, they’re pushed to make changes, but if they’re just passable, they become comfortably numb.
I’ve done this too—telling myself I could wait for the right moment or for things to get worse before I make a change. But that’s a lie.
Open your eyes, please. Can’t you see it?
We shouldn’t wait until we’re in pain to start living the life we want. It’s time to be okay with uncertainty and lean into it. It can be scary, but living a toothless life is even scarier.
You deserve more than just “okay.” Life is happening now, and you owe it to yourself.
Remember, we only get one shot at this—tomorrow isn’t guaranteed.
One question for you
What’s one move you can make today to reclaim your life from “just okay”?
Share your thoughts—I’d love to know what’s on your mind.
RECOMMENDED: Spend more time in nature and cut back on your screen time. Plan a day trip outdoors or take a full day off from your phone—maybe even do both. Then, let me know how it went.
If you enjoyed this post, share it with someone who might enjoy the read.
Until next time!
— Alberto
P.S. I’m off to the UK this week for my first Hyrox event (a fitness competition). Just a reminder: I’m a CrossFitter who’s only run once in the last 3.5 years. Should be interesting… but I crave this. I crave competing. I crave that pain.
Congratulations!! Good work