Carpe Diem: We Will Die Tomorrow. All. Of. Us.

If they taught us anything in military writing school, it was bottom line up front. Well, can’t be more bottom line and up front than this. BLUF is a military communications acronym—it stands for “bottom line up front”—that’s designed to enforce speed and clarity in reports and emails. The basic idea is simple: put the most important details first. Don’t tease or delay your main point because people are busy and their time is valuable.

What a way to go out with the old and in with the new (year). So yes, all of us will die tomorrow. We just don’t know when that tomorrow will come. In the meantime and in the grand scheme of things, there’s so little time and so much left to do still.

Seize the Day or Carpe Diem in Latin. There’s a very famous movie scene, where a late, great comedic actor challenged students to “Carpe Diem” because “We are all food for worms…each and every one of us…is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold and die.” As we head into a new year a friend, a military spouse herself reminded me of such and offered her advice as she forges on with life:

·       God first

·       Family second

·       Everything else can be prioritized

“For my mental wellness, I have changed my outlook in life. Through therapy, I found myself saying "would of, should of and could of." Regrets for the past and why didn't I do the things that I thought I "should" have done were weighing down my heart. Once I realized what I was doing and how it was affecting me, this last year I decided to change my outlook. I decided to live for the moment. I became fully aware of what I was doing, I also realized God has given me the ability to make choices. Either I could be happy in the moment or the opposite. I wanted "happiness" so I realized moments added up to minutes, hours, days, etc. Looking back at this year, I am happy. I am satisfied with my life, caring for my family, holding down this household, concentrating on my health (mental and physical) and accepting who I am today.” Thank you for sharing, Dear Friend. Don’t wait for things to get easier. Life will always be complicated. Learn to be happy right now. Otherwise, you’ll run out of time.

Professionally, you will eventually leave military service (if you haven’t already). Your time as a Soldier or a Marine or a Sailor or an Airman or a Coastie or even a Guardian WILL END. So what’s next? How do you know? Are you going to continue to be what Uncle Sam ordered you to be right after high school? Or what if your MOS doesn’t cleanly translate to the corporate world? What then? Sooner or later, your tomorrow for leaving military service will come. Are you ready? How will you get ready? Do you have enough education with the requisite degree(s) for your career choice? Have you even started looking at the qualifications? What if there’s a gap between your ETS or EAS and getting your degree; what’s the back-up plan in the meantime? Will you be what you always wanted to be when you finally “grow up?” Or have you changed your mind since high school?

So many questions. So many variables. So many decisions. So. Little. Time. Whether you decide to live to work or to work to live, you must still need to make that decision. Your path will lead to several forks much like the path(s) that led you to raise your right hand and join the military to serve, all in the name of protecting and defending. And like those previous paths, how did you come to make that fateful decision? Was it because of family; a tradition of honor, truth, justice and the American way that dates back to over two centuries of conflicts? Or was it because you sought adventure and the mystique that the military embodies? Perhaps it was to travel, literally visit exotic places across the globe when the only world you knew ended just past the state line? Or maybe you were much more strategic; motivated to learn a trade, earn money for college that you could not afford at the time. Either option would allow for more education and professional development; just do your time, learn a skill and then pop smoke when your contract ends. Or was it because you’re of a tactical mindset, reactive and in need of immediate gratification? A cash bonus to spend on a new set of wheels or a high end stereo system; or was it a booming stereo system for your new set of wheels. Not the flashy type? In addition to three squares and a rack, some disposable income to spend at the Class VI in a dry county playing video games on your all-in-one high-def entertainment center with a bunch of strangers under dubious and questionably non-PC avatars. And finally, is it quite possibly that you simply had zero options left? Already in your 20’s and still living at home, dead end j-o-b paying minimum wage, community college professors not inspirational enough, never was the social butterfly to begin with and a couple of minor run ins with the authorities…the military was your ticket to a new life, a fresh start. However and whatever your story, you are at that crossroads again. And like before, you must seize that moment. NOW.

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” - Steve Jobs, late innovator, Stanford Commencement Address, 2005

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“Make your lives extraordinary” while you still have the time. Carpe Diem. Seize the Day.

Here are a few other quotes about time and seizing the day:

1.       “The trouble is, you think you have time.” - Buddha

2.       “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” – Theodore Roosevelt

3.       “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” – Aristotle

4.       “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

5.       “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.” – Confucius

6.       “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.” – Pablo Picasso

7.       “Nothing will work unless you do.” – Maya Angelou

8.       “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” – Lao Tzu

9.       “Whatever you are, be a good one.” – Abraham Lincoln

10.   “You never fail until you stop trying.” – Albert Einstein

Welcome to this blog. In this series, we will reminisce about that we did not think we would ever miss before we got out; hopefully with a good dose of healthy humor. With tips, tricks and secrets to reintegrating back to the civilian workforce and with the proper mindset. And we welcome positive feedback from those of us who have already made the transition to the real world. xUSAmp is a group of determined veterans, allies and family members who have worked in corporate HR and specialize in preparing veterans and military spouses to transition to corporate America.

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