Just do the best you can

"You just do the best you can for that day, and that is all," said Su. He was the yoga teacher for the session I was in. We were talking about the best way to approach his hot yoga classes other than crying and collapsing from the pain.

"If you see others doing better than you, don't compare. They're different. You're different. Everyday, you challenge yourself. Do better than last time. Do the best you can in that moment," he said.

He made a beautiful point. The part about not comparing yourself struck a chord because I was ruminating that exact thought a couple of weeks back, but 'doing your best for that moment' was a gem.

How often have you put stuff on hold just because you weren't feeling it? How often have you not started on your reports because they were too tedious? How about washing the dishes because you thought you could leave them for tomorrow? Or what about not going to the gym because you were feeling tired?

How different would your life be if you thought to yourself 'I want to do the best I can today'? I, for one, know that if I were to take up that saying sooner, I'd be in a totally different place than I am right now.

People often have a common opinion when observing in retrospect. "If I did X, I'd surely be Y by now." Smokers would rant about how much money they'd have saved if they didn't smoke. Fat people—or at least those who think they're fat—would scoff at the desserts they had accompanying their even larger meal. Procrastinators would wish they worked harder and not read their goal list a year later realising they haven't even got started.

Now I know that dragging your ass to the gym might be the last thing you'd want to do, especially after a commute in the traffic jam sans a long day's work, and I know that quitting smoking might be something that only happens in fairytale land, but that's the point. 

I know all these actions take up all of your energy, and possibly all of what you can afford to put out, but that's why it's so important to give it your best just for that day.

You might think that little cancer stick isn't going to hurt you, or just one more burger isn't going to make you fat, or that lazing the day away is going to be a rare occurrence, but that's the exact thinking process that's going to be your downfall.

Some people even choose to ignore it, justifying that their lunch decisions surely can't be that huge of a decision, and end up making bad decisions that accumulate to a less than ideal bigger picture.

Understandably, this is something hard to do. This is something everyone preaches yet when they think no one's looking, they take the easy way out.

So back at the gym, I made a mental note about this topic and thanked Su. By the time I've prepared and eaten dinner, took a bath, finished some work for the next day, groomed myself and cleaned the room, I was pretty much spent and decided to write this article the day after. But I still had an hour before bedtime, and I could try to write a shitty first draft, or just laze until I slept.

Of course, if I chose the latter, you wouldn't be reading this piece.