You can't do everything

But there is one thing you can do

“The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.”
–Roger Martin and A.G. Lafley, from Playing to Win

This isn't a paean to the joy of missing out (JOMO). It's a eulogy. The defiant rebranding of one emotion (FOMO) into its contrary does nothing to quelch the sad truth: You can't do everything.

You can't do everything means you can't be good at everything. You may never learn that second language. You might never find work/life balance. You might never be the life of the party. That's OK. You're only human.

You can't do everything means your days are numbered. Even super-humans are bounded by time. You will miss that once-in-a-lifetime event for a never-saw-it coming emergency. You can't try every flavor of ice cream. You will never see your great-great-great-great grandchildren graduate college, no matter how superlative your scheduling skills.

But there is one thing you can do.

You can't do everything means you have to (and get to) choose something. Pursue the whole body yes and march toward what you want.

You can't do everything means I am grateful that you are here.