What if.....left instead of right

 Before I get started I need to give the disclaimer that this is not going to be one of those deep life topics....like "what if I never met you" kind of thing....it is going to be more about how one decision can change the future when you find yourself at a fork in the road......

You make decisions every day that can change your future. Simple decisions....like whether to go to work....or to pick up a bottle. Whether to eat breakfast or to skip breakfast. You might not think it...but these subtle things can effect your entire future....your path. I skipped breakfast one day when I was 10. If I had breakfast that day I might be president today. Ok, so maybe I am going deeper than I intended...but do you understand what I am meaning by this? Every decision we make has the power to change the future. Simple? You with me? Ok...here we go....

We miss you Mr. Farley

Take the guy in the picture above. You know one day Chris got up and ate breakfast. That breakfast changed his future path. It landed him in main stream movies with David Spade and dancing with Patrick Swayze on a SNL Skit. Had he skipped breakfast we may have never know who he was. That one breakfast started him down the path, but he could have been pushed onto another path if he wore blue shoes on Tuesday. It is really simple....your path is not set in stone....your future is not paved in concrete. 

Gary Fisher

I met Gary Fisher at Iceman a a few years ago. I heard he was going to be there and sure enough I saw him. I walked up and introduced myself. He graciously posed for a picture and went onto his other activities. Let's think about how he ended up where he is for a minute. He was a pioneer of the sport I love. What if he had never looked at a bike? That day he decided to give riding a bike a chance put Gary on a path to be one of the best known people in the industry...with his name on bikes and and a very stylish mustache. What if he had gotten burned out....what if after a crash he walked away....letting that one event determine his future? A lot to think about for sure....

So that leads me to the final section of this strange post. The picture above shows two paths....they may indeed lead to the same place....but the paths are indeed different. The one on the left looks more open and flat....the other looks tighter and goes uphill. Which one do you take? On Monday you might take the path on the left....you have had a long day and don't need any more struggle. By Saturday you need to blow off some steam so you take the path to the right and burn your frustration out on the climbs. Pushing as hard as you can up the hills and leaving your stress on the side of the trail. In the end....you are still on the same path....but how you got there was different. Do you think your decision to go left affected your future? How about if you took the path to the right....you are in the parking lot...by your car....in the same spot.....but did your path change? You might think that you are in the same place....but your future was changed when you took the path to the right. That harder path made you stronger. Maybe you will eat a healthier diet....take the stairs instead of the elevator......park a long way from the building. Your one decision leads to another and another and another....effectively changing your future. 

Think about this the next time you are riding. Maybe there is a section of trail that you tend to skip because you either don't like it or it is too difficult. Take it.......see what happens. I think you can change your future...even a little....to a better path. Yesterday I started a workout program. I made the decision to start it a while ago when I bought the book. That was one step. Starting it was another. Now...I am going to get on my trainer again....for an hour...because I know that this decision is important to help me stay on the path that I have chosen. Slowly....the path will unfold and the decisions I have made in the past will fall away and my decisions tomorrow will help to create my path.....see you out there.