A LETTER FROM CHRIS SUAREZ
“OBJECTS IN MIRROR ARE CLOSER THAN THEY APPEAR”
Recently I have had some interesting car luck. I use that expression loosely, as I don’t believe in luck. However both of my vehicles are in the shop getting some body work repaired. Who was at fault? That is irrelevant. But let’s just say that the Tesla needed a new rear bumper and hatch. The jeep needed a new front left fender. Something struck me as I reviewed the estimates from both repairs. The simple rule printed on every passenger side mirror seems appropriate:
“Objects in mirror are closer than they appear.”
This warning is required to be engraved in passenger side mirrors in many countries, including the United States. It reminds drivers to be more careful. A car in the next lane may seem far away, when in fact they are closer than you may think. This warning is to make the driver a bit more cautious, perhaps waiting to make a decision to change lanes, to keep you just a little further from the wall behind you, or to push you into being just a little bit more risk averse.
As I was duct taping my fender back onto my Jeep I was thinking about that warning. First, yes, that wall was definitely closer than it appeared. I have a busted fender to prove that. But more importantly, I thought about where that truth could show up elsewhere in our life. I began to review certain goals that I had set, milestones I had hoped to reach, people I wanted to get into business with, things I wanted to learn, opportunities I wanted to unlock, or even assets I wanted to build.
At times I have found myself looking at each of these things through a figurative side view mirror. They seemed so far away. When things seem far away we lose focus. We are less strategic. Yet, relatively speaking, they were very close. When we don’t have that warning inscribed on our “side view mirror”, we can begin to feel that what we are doing today isn’t having an impact on our immediate future. Discouragement can set in when our preferred future feels further away than it really is.
There were walls to scale, there were risks to take, there were lanes and directions to change. When we realize that our preferred future is closer than it may appear, it brings us ultimate focus. Take some time this week and re-engage with your goals. Revisit your long range plans. Reconnect with your mission and vision.
Then ask yourself:
How close are you?
What if you were a lot closer than you think?
What would you do differently?
What would you need to do to accomplish that in half the time?
Whether we think so or not, objects in the mirror are closer than they appear. Who we see ourselves as in the distant future is just a few small changes and a bit more focus away.
Chris Suaerez