Life is like a rotating wheel

...and we're down to the last leg of 2015. It's hard to believe the year is coming to an end, not because it feels like the year zoomed by, but because I've been so busy, it doesn't feel like I've noticed the year go by.

I like this time of year when I see a clear goal of my last few gigs/work and I can finally wind-down guilt-free. Things have been tough for me recently as I can feel burn out both mentally and physically creep upon me (man I could use a massage so bad!). But it's like the last leg of any race, you just have to power through it or end up throwing away all the hard work you've put in all along. This is where a person's true character comes out and that mental toughness shines.

So 2015 has seen me travel a lot, fulfilling a lot of my goals as well as face a lot of new challenges. From freaking out at airports not knowing what to do because of Visa/passport issues to laying belly up staring at the starry sky in the middle of the ocean after having enjoyed a whole day on a cruise ship to some of my craziest arguments and heartaches to moments of inner peace where you grow through pain. A few things I feel I successfully accomplished is growth in my comedy life, with me participating in quite a few comedy festivals, improvement in my mental toughness (well, I'm able to power through a lot more) and having a stronger body to compliment all this. A few things I have yet to accomplish are better work/life balance where I need to foresee busy times better and realizing that I'm not a machine, but a human being and need moments for myself (as selfish as that sounds in my books).

2016 is an exciting year because I have big shoes to fill and new adventures already planned ahead. A lot of travel is already locked in for January so it'll keep things exciting but I'll also need to learn how to better use my time while commuting (gaming on my phone has been fun but I could do a lot more ;). I've got a lot of daily rituals I want to get in motion so when the new year rings in it's not a new year's resolution but a strengthening of a good habit. I'm already working at learning to draw the line so I have space for myself but as anyone who is self-employed will know, you're always toughest on yourself because you know your potential and expect even more.

Ultimately one lesson 2015 has taught me is that every action has a reaction. Maybe not equal, maybe not even fair, but everything has a reaction. It's more about how you learn to evolve to the reactions rather than predict them too far ahead. Things change too much to plan too much ahead, but instead of trying to plan and fit the world into your schedule, it's about making a framework and evolving based on what the world gives you. I guess it's like learning all scales and techniques with a musical instrument, but learning to improvise with whatever the rest of the band gives you. Rather than say "OK, we'll play 8 bars of this, then change to that", you build your foundation, then put it aside, and watch the world and act accordingly.

What's odd is this is something I learned many, many years ago from the book Effortless Mastery, but I'm realizing that this applies to everything in life, after all, life, like any instrument is a skill you need to pick up, practice, and master over time. The only challenge is making sure the people you improvise with also have this mindset and are at this level. Rather than constantly think about perhaps you need new people to improvise a song with, why not encourage each other to reach mastery together throw growth, sharing and understanding. After all, even perfection gets boring over time.

2016. It's time to master the year ahead!