When I was in second grade, I recall the teacher mentioning the year 2000. I did the math and realized I’d be 43 years old. I thought I certainly wouldn’t live that long.  Now it’s 12 years after that iconic date and I’ll hit the double nickel this year. As each year passes, I’m learning to better live in the now and drive the dream.

To live in the now means to let go of past failures and accomplishments. What ever else they were, they are now past. It also means to let go of worries about the future. Worrying wastes precious time and energy…and both are in limited supply.

To live in the now requires courage. We must be willing to let go of the expectations of others and their expectations for us. We must strive to do the hard work that this particular moment requires. The better we do the hard work of this moment, the clearer the challenge for the next moment becomes. This seems a universal truth to me.

But living in the now requires some future focus as well, we must drive the dream by pondering, meandering, thinking directed thoughts, planning and enduring. All these tasks get done in the now, but drive the dream of the future.

So take time to ponder and meander. Great ideas and directions don’t come from the noisy crowd. Solitude rocks. But then take those dreams and make a plan. Remember, we can only manage what we measure. So have the courage to be specific.

Then know that change requires endurance. Know yourself well enough to understand your own motivations and traps. Struggle to keep yourself headed in the right direction. And when you fail, realize it’s not catastrophic, it’s just a one time failure that you need to move past by your next success. Endure.

A young friend on New Year’s Eve told me about the great successes in his new construction business. He told me he lives by my advice on success: Work harder and do the things the other guy isn’t willing to do. His paraphrase works for him, but I still like my original advice better: Successful people do the things unsuccessful people don’t want to do and won’t do.