TIME & PURPOSE

THE SIMPLE NEWSLETTER - ISSUE # 015

Welcome back to The Simple Newsletter, where I share reflections and lessons to lend you inspiration, new ways of thinking, and actionable insights. No strings, just value. Let's get into it.

ADAM'S THOUGHT

Why does it all go so damn fast?

The days go fast, the weeks go fast. You blink, and your baby is suddenly a teenager. You plan for a year ahead in business, and just as you feel like you're hitting your stride, it’s already the second quarter.

I once heard a PhD named Dr. Falcone say this: “The days are long, but the years are short.”

But why do the days feel so long if the years are flying by? I think it’s because real progress requires those long, relentless days. While you’re living them, every task, every hour can feel like a mountain to climb. But when you look back, the weeks and months seem to have streaked by before you even noticed.

Is that a good thing or a bad thing? It’s both, really. A catch-22. You might feel sadness over how fast it’s all moving, yet there’s joy in the fact you get to spend your days chasing down the things you care about.

But what happens if you’re not pursuing what you want? Time seems to crawl. It reminds me of being in school, staring at the clock. You play that mental game, telling yourself not to look up for as long as possible. You take a note, listen to the teacher, give it your best shot… and when you finally glance back, only three and a half minutes have passed.

Why? Because the cliché is true: time flies when you’re having fun.

But here’s the thing. Even when you’re enjoying the pursuit, part of you still wishes time didn’t fly. It’s the trade-off we all face. Would you rather have long, hard days that make the years vanish in the blink of an eye, or drag through each day feeling trapped by complacency or obligation?

ADAM'S LESSON

You’ve likely heard it before, but it’s worth repeating in this context: be careful what you wish for. That said, I’d offer a slight tweak here. Instead of being careful, I’d say this: remember what you wished for.

These long, tiring days you’re slogging through right now? They’re what you planned for, dreamed of, even begged for. But here’s the catch–when you actually arrive at doing the work, it often doesn’t feel as exciting or glamorous as it first seemed on paper.

Remember, the result you envisioned was always tied to the hard work it would take to get there. The long, exhausting grind is part of the bargain. The thing is, it isn’t just “the cost of admission”—it’s also a gift. These long hard days are the very thing you gave yourself when you decided to chase the thing you cared about.

Sure, on paper, it all sounded better. The reality may feel heavier, more intense. But here’s the truth: you chose this. You now have the ability, the demand, and the opportunity to do it. That’s powerful.

When you remember why you planned for these days, the effort becomes less of a burden to get through and more of a privilege to take on. These long, hard days hold the keys to the results you wanted.

And, as Bob Ross once said, the results may just end up being “happy little accidents.”

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Sometimes, it’s good to pause from whatever’s weighing on you, take a step back, and reflect on the plans you made—the why behind them. That simple act of remembering might just give you the energy and perspective to tackle the long, hard day in front of you.

You’ve asked for this. You’ve dreamed of this. Now, you get to do the thing.

Until next time,

Adam