Invest in Life

There is a reason you think. There is a reason your lungs soak up oxygen and your heart pumps blood through your veins.

Every day that you open your eyes is a day you can't start over. Don't waste it.

Take what you've been given -- time, resources, talents -- and invest in life.

You were not given a beating heart to accent a dull, tuneless life. Your heart is beating to join in the rhythm of the waves, add to the whistling of the wind, and play a part in the symphony of life that surrounds you.

Join in.

Take stock of what you have: 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Decide what's important to you. Start living.

Be the stone that starts the ripples -- not the boulder at the edge of the pond.

Step One: Evaluate your schedule and routine.

Map out your week hour by hour, marking what time is taken for work and other responsibilities and nonnegotiables. Plan specific times for other important things, like family and sleep. Note the empty spaces.

Step Two: Think through your interests and decide what to pursue.

Depending on your point in life, this may be very easy or very hard. If it's very hard, visit a library and venture into the non-fiction, Dewey-decimaled section. Look for Idiot's Guides to . . . well, everything.

Once you have a few ideas of what you'd like to try, evaluate your resources and choose what works with them. (Tip: Think creatively.) Work these things into three to five of your schedule's empty spaces.

Step Three: Leave some blanks.

In your schedule -- not on people's faces.

These remaining blanks are for extra time to yourself, with others, or in creative and enriching pursuits. No Facebook or World of Warcraft allowed.

If someone gives you a blank look, tell them you're avoiding a midlife crisis by exploring the adventure of life. Pay attention to their reaction and share it in a comment.