James+B’s+Final+AmEx+2014+Speech

=Title of Speech= Live in the now

=Text of Speech=

Everyone in this room has become a slave of time. We are controlled by a simple analog machine hanging in the back of the room. It has created the much needed psychological structure in human life since our beginnings. That is why we never think twice about it.

In the back of our minds, we are always thinking about the past or the future; never the present. “I wonder how I did on that test yesterday”, “I can’t wait for school to be over!”, or “I am so worried for the SAT tomorrow.” It a bad habit to constantly think about what has or will happen, because you will miss out on what’s happening NOW. You may be zoning our when a friend is talking to you. You respond with “yea”, “uh huh”, and the unconscious nodding of your head when you are really thinking about what you are going to eat when you get home. If you are always thinking about the future, you will never be satisfied with life. You will always think, “What next” and never realize that the present time is the future that you have been waiting for. I want people to live in the present. Observe what’s around you. Don’t just wait for the perfect opportunity to come along. You will end up waiting forever because the perfect opportunity is the one that you make now. You can still have goals and ambitions for the future, just don’t dwell on the past and make sure that those goals are in the back of your mind where they can influence you but not keep you from living truly in the present.

Schedules are dangerous. Time is always the same, but it is life that is unexpected. I have a routine that I do each morning before school. My clock at home is 7 minutes fast. I have calculated the exact amount of time I have for everything I need to do in the morning to the exact minute so that I can walk into Physio class with a 30 second buffer zone before the 8:00 bell rings. Let’s say my clock decided to show the correct time one day or my car didn’t start. My entire routine would collapse just because it is so strict. In life, you have to learn to be flexible. When life throws you curveballs, you have to be ready to adapt and overcome. If you are rushing to your table to eat lunch right as you get out of class, take time to look at your surroundings. Don’t be afraid to deviate from your original plans and try something different. Strike up a conversation with someone new, compliment a classmate, or simply take the time to walk slowly and enjoy the sun. Be open to new experiences and learn to adventure out of your comfort zone. It will always be worth it.

In the future that I want to live in, I don’t want it to be full of people just trying to get ahead in life, striving for a better future for themselves and never realizing it when they find it. I want to be around people who are enjoying their lives, have an optimistic mindset, and take notice of the world around them. Don’t get caught up in a routine that makes you wonder how the years flew by so fast once you are 50 years old. Add variety to your life and don’t be afraid to try new things. Live in the present and you will love living.

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