I listened to a podcast last week where the host recapped how she performed with her 2023 New Year’s Resolutions. One of her resolutions was to get outside, every day, for at least 23 minutes. (Get it – 23 minutes a day in 2023…please, gag me).
Anyway, she was proud that she accomplished this except for a few days where she had extenuating circumstances. Good for her, I guess.
I, however, was flabbergasted at the idea. I’m outside for 2-3 hours minimum every day. Even when I was was working full-time with significant overtime, I was outside at least 1-2 hours a day walking the dogs.
As I thought about it, I realized that pretty much every day of my entire life, I’ve spent hours outside. I’ve walked, run, hiked and biked everywhere until I got my first car the I was 22. Even then, I walked for hours – sometimes for fun, sometimes to save money by parking in cheaper lots that were miles away from work and sometimes just to clear my head.
The podcaster is my age, well educated, a successful author with 5 bestsellers, has two older kids (one in college and the other in high school), a professional husband and works from home. She lives in the upper east side of Manhattan which has a walkability score of 99 out of 100.
I couldn’t imagine living there and not walking outside for several hours a day out of sheer necessity and convenience. Then again, I also can’t fathom living in a $4M condo in Manhattan. Clearly, our lives are quite different.
I won’t judge her priorities or her resolutions. For me, it is satisfying to live the way I do. I may not have millions, but in my mind, I already live like a rich man. And, I don’t even need to make New Year’s resolutions to do it.