Part of the reason (maybe) is because we are not motivated enough to act. What we may need is a new perspective. How do we look at it in an angle which will persuade us to move?
So I thought I’d share how Warren Buffett motivated people to take action with regards their bodies and minds. I got this quote straight from his biography called “The SNOWBALL: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life”.
After reading the whole book, this is among the passages that stuck with me. It was very insightful and shows why Warren Buffett is well-loved and respected. For a few of you who don’t know who this guy is, suffice it to say that he is the most successful investor in the world today.
So even if it’s Buffett who spoke, I give credit to the book’s author Alice Shroeder. Here’s what she wrote about what Buffett said:
“When I was sixteen, I had just two things on my mind—girls and cars,” Warren Buffett would say, taking a little poetic license here by leaving out the part about the money. “I wasn’t very good with girls. So I thought about cars. I thought about girls, too, but I had more luck with cars.If this story does not convince you to do right by your mind and body, I don’t know what will. Otherwise, the next step is to figure out what to do about it. What should you be doing to maintain your health physically and mentally?
“Let’s say that when I turned sixteen, a genie had appeared to me. And that genie said, ‘Warren, I’m going to give you the car of your choice. It’ll be here tomorrow morning with a big bow tied on it. Brand-new. And it’s all yours.’
“Having heard all the genie stories, I would say, ‘What’s the catch?’ And the genie would answer, ‘There’s only one catch. This is the last car you’re ever going to get in your life. So it’s got to last a lifetime.’
“If that had happened, I would have picked out that car. But, can you imagine, knowing it had to last a lifetime, what I would do with it?
“I would read the manual about five times. I would always keep it garaged. If there was the least little dent or scratch, I’d have it fixed right away because I wouldn’t want it rusting. I would baby that car, because it would have to last a lifetime.
“That’s exactly the position you are in concerning your mind and body. You only get one mind and one body. And it’s got to last a lifetime. Now, it’s very easy to let them ride for many years. But if you don’t take care of that mind and that body, they’ll be a wreck forty years later, just like the car would be.
“It’s what you do right now, today, that determines how your mind and body will operate ten, twenty, and thirty years from now.”
I believe it’s an easier problem to deal with which all of us are more capable of resolving. You’ll know you’ve taken the first step depending on how you intend to spend your time tomorrow. So go and make it happen!
