One day at a time — my 2021 motto
The words grate across my eardrums. “We just have to take it one day at a time.” It’s a phrase I’ve heard countless times. In my previous life as a sportswriter, coaches and players were constantly dropping that exact wording. Or they conveyed the sentiment slightly differently. A play at a time, a quarter or half at a time. Sometimes they would break life and progress into an even smaller category — one foot in front of the other.
I hate that quote. When I’m searching for a unique story angle, “one day at a time” about as fruitful as saying “I don’t want to talk about it.” That’s why high school athlete interviews have endless potential. Coaches teach players not to give a quote that will motivate their opponents. Typically that translates: “Don’t say anything interesting.” By the time most players reach the college or professional level, they have been interviewed enough to avoid saying anything that could make an article fun.
In 2021, however, I’m going to do the unthinkable. I’m going to adopt that coaching cliché I loathe.
Why does everyone say it all the time? Because it’s absolutely true.
This past year is the best example possible. Planning anything past a few days ahead was folly in 2020. You think you’re doing the Boston Marathon in April? Maybe think again. Family reunion in June, rescheduled Boston in September, and numerous other planned outings along the way? Not happening.
The small things were up in the air as well. Run out of toilet paper? Well, maybe you can find some at the store. Or maybe you need to rummage the closet for old shirts that can be thrown out.
No other year of my life has been less predictable than 2020 was for me. At the same time, days, weeks, and months bled together. Getting up and out the door in the morning for a run seemed pointless. Motivation was elusive. Why should I pour energy into increasing my fitness with no upcoming races or chances to test myself?
That’s where the short-sighted view comes in. I got out the door and went for a run, because I knew physical exertion would keep me healthy. And that includes my brain health as well. I almost always feel better about a day after running.
Life became a series of similar days, so why waste energy on stress over the big picture. Instead, I tried to accomplish what I could each day. And remember to find joy in those small moments and little victories.
I set aside more specific time to spend with Rachel and Addie, and I worked on putting my phone away in those moments (something I have struggled with to start 2021). Racing Strava segments gave me a way to compete against myself when larger races paused, and I focused on other weekly mileage goals (I ran 100+ miles in 17 straight weeks, a personal record).
So far this month I’ve seen numerous memes comparing 2020 to 2021. The theme seems to be that the world looks exactly the same after the calendar flipped over from December to January, and they are quite funny.
But inside those jokes lies truth. The start of a new year always feels like a clean slate, but most of 2020’s problems didn’t disappear.
I want to mark race and vacation dates on my 2021 calendar, but no one truly knows where our world will be in a week, a month, or even this time next year.
That lack of future vision can be crippling, and it can stress us to the point that we are struggling daily. For the first week of 2021 I failed at several of my goals that I accomplished regularly in 2020. My motivation to get up early and tackle the day dipped, and fell back into old habits of hitting snooze on my phone and avoiding my to-do list.
And that’s OK. We all have those dips, those lulls in our daily drive.
It’s all about the daily fight to be better. Working each moment trying to be productive and move ahead, and celebrating and appreciating the small victories along the way.
Stay consistent in the small things, and the big breakthroughs will follow.
For me, and I don’t say this without cringing, it’s about attacking life one day at a time.