What do you hate not doing?

I’ve just read about this question posed by Derek Sivers in his book “Hell Yeah or No” and it got me thinking.

We love to ask: What would you love to do?

However, we often come up with a long list of answers, of possibilities.

If I had time, this would be nice. And this, and this and that.

“What would you love to do?” assumes we have endless time
whereas
“What do you hate not doing?” acknowledges we have limited time.

There’s a time to explore, brainstorm and diverge, however there’s also a time to converge, choose and stick with something. This is if we want to become good at it.

“What would you love to do?” focuses on the future
whereas
“What would you hate not doing?” focuses on the actions we already take.

How we live each day is how we live our lives.

As the future is unknown focusing on what somebody does in the present is probably the best predictor of their future success.

“What would you love to do?” tempts us to chase short-term pleasures
whereas
“What would you hate not doing?” shows us what pain we are willing to endure rsp what resistance we are willing to fight.

I hate when I don’t make time to write.
I hate when I don’t make time to read and learn.
I hate when I don’t make time to connect with self, friends, family, new interesting people and the universe.
I hate when I don’t share what I’ve learnt and created.
I hate when I don’t make time to cook.
I hate when I don’t clean up and declutter, my house or my mind.
I hate when I don’t go for walks in nature or move my body.
I hate when I don’t make time to digest information and experiences and order my thoughts.

You see, I don’t love all of these activities, all of the time.

I don’t just love them. I need them, like oxygen to breathe. It’s not a flirty, superficial love. It’s deep love-hate.

What do you hate not doing?