“It is only the man that delays his gratification that is a man indeed.”
(Sunday Adelaja)

Yesterday we talked about our new book, Choose Your Own Adulthood: A Small Book about the Small Choices that Make the Biggest Difference. It comes out March 28, but it’s already available for pre-order!

The book started as a series of letters to my daughter, Hannah, and it’s about the tough, nuanced choices of adulthood. This first one could not be more important:

Pursue More of What You Want Most, and Less of What You Want Right Now.

Far too often we abandon something we want most for whatever it is we want right now. For instance, college students want to make a good grade on each of their finals, and eventually get a degree. Far too often, they are tempted to neglect those studies for the party that night.

Of course, we all face this choice every day. For instance, I want a lower-stress tax experience next month, but I want to do anything other than start arranging my paperwork this weekend. You can relate to this as well: You want a healthier body, but you want to skip the gym today. You want a better relationship with your spouse, but you’d rather not talk about it tonight.

Life simply goes better, however, whenever we can resist the temptations of the quick & easy, and choose the things we want most instead.

Peace begins with pause,