why are you doing that thing anyway? another snippet from my book in progress--

Why? because its there.

Today I needed to pull out my ice packs and ice down my legs and shoulders--over did it a little working on my splits and pull up and FINALLY am taking advice to respect my body instead of pushing through pain. There is nothing rad about injuring myself just to meet a goal--even one with a deadline I can see. 

Working on the next section for the editor--here is a taste:

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The problem with taking on an epic shit mission is that many times people under take them as surrogates for getting their emotional needs met.

But you ask "what about my Epic Shit Mission? Does that mean I don’t get to learn how to surf?"

Yes you get to learn how to surf. You also get to climb glaciers, hike in Iceland and do motocross. Anything! You have to ask yourself one teeny thing first.

Why are you doing it?

When Edmund Hillary was asked why he wanted to climb Mount Everest he didn’t say it was because he wanted to find love and prove to his father once and for all that he would some day amount to something.

No, he said he wanted to climb it BECAUSE ITS THERE. Not for love, not to impress anyone or even himself. He had a passion for the mountain. That was the difference.

It is far better to pursue one silly but truly sincere mission than to do something big and impressive because you really are trying to get some other need met.

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I was writing this section and contemplating the many times I took on some crazy goal and either having it blow up in my face or, on completing it, feeling kind of empty. Long ago I remember someone saying that you really only need one good reason to do something and if you have more than that you probably are trying too hard to convince yourself and should re-evaluate.

I wish I kept count on all the times I substituted action or achievement for satisfying unacknowledged emotional needs. I wrote this blog post before I fully digested my real motivations for going on a surf retreat. I believe the choices I made would have been different if I were more aware of my feelings at the time and chose to deal with them instead of run from them.

Just for today, think of one thing going on in your life that you are overloading with unspoken emotional needs. What can you do right now to satisfy one of those needs without putting all your eggs in one basket?