I have just been reflecting on all things concerning life and just realized that the margin of error in life is very small. One small mistake, one lost opportunity, one wrong turn and you are finished.
One of the things that interests me the most is the probability of being born. It is one in over a billion. We had more chances of not being born than being born. That sounds scary to know that if the sperm had been a little slower, if the sperm had relaxed just a little, there would be no you, there would be no me.
And that is with all things in life. We don't get a lot of chance to do great things in this world. That means, when we get the chance, we must be extremely prepared for it and ready to give it all our all.
You can be the best driver, with your seat belt, renewed permit, never drinks. And just that one small mistake from that other driver, costs your life. You can do your part in life, do nothing wronf and just that one stray bullet lands on you. There you are, gone. Low margins of error.
A second is the difference between a good company and a great company. One tiny decision and a company that was great is just no more.
I had a neighbour who lost all her three kids in one day. It was just about timing, they chose to stop one inch away from the 'right place' and the trailer overturned just right there.
We are all going to have our 15 minutes of fame during the course of our lives but for many of us, these minutes shall pass and we shall never grab that opportunity once again.
Regret is what scares people about death. They regret those chances they didn't take, the moments they didn't pick up the phone and make that call. The difference between life and death is just micro-seconds. The difference between failure and success is just micro-seconds. The margin of error is too small that we can't even afford to be complacent in any way. That means that everyday, we must be at the best of ourselves, outworking ourselves.
I now believe that Timing is everything in life. A little too early and no one understands your idea. A little too late and you have missed the bus.
We spend our days in life at the edge, whether we know it or not. You just do one wrong thing, make one wrong decision and that is it, you are gone, wipped off the face of this Universe.
Rwanda was seconds away from being a failed country in 1994. Just a few more days and there would have been no country to speak off.
The thing that really scares me about life but also motivates me is that low margin of error. Everyday, every hour, every second, we are always an inch away from extinction.
As such, we must do whatever we do to the best that we can do it. Steve Jobs always said; "this is a very noisy world, you are not going to get a lot of time to do amazing things." So when a chance comes, do your best.
And we do our best NOW. Some people say; "I will work hard when I start my own business." Somehow they convince themselves that they will work much harder in their business than when they are employed. It never happens.
So whatever you are doing right now, do it in a massive way, like that is your last message to the world. I don't care what you do, however small or big, just do it in a massive way having it at the back of your mind that the margin of error is very low and you must be at your best.
The saddest thing in life is a life of regret. And regret comes from those things we didn't do but should have done. It is about woulda, shoulda, coulda. It is sad when you look into the eyes of most old people, you can see regret in their eyes. It just never hit them that the margin of error eas too low. And as such, they wasted opportunities, they didn't put in the effort they should have put in, they didn't have the work ethic they should have had and now it is all gone, there is no recovery.
Today you are on top of the world in your career, industry whatever. You could be the most popular guy today but if you grow complacent, that margin of error is gonna swallow you up.
That is my humble reflection from today.
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