Do You Want to Be an Actor or an Audience in Your Life?

It’s winter in the Southern Hemisphere. The temperature is around 20 degrees Celsius, and the sun has been a rare sight lately. I’m wearing a T-shirt, sweating from the humidity, yet feeling a chill from the wind, and on the verge of a cold. It's a confusing mix of hot and cold, but only I know what feels comfortable for me.

This weather is a protest on my skin and nose, but a blessing for my mind. It’s quiet, not too dry or chaotic—the perfect space for writing, creating, and envisioning the future.

I put on an old rock song to inject some fire back into a life that's become too calm, almost stagnant. How can we make our lives "blossom" again?

Life is a constant crossroads. It's not just about choosing a path, but about pausing to look ahead, reflect on the past, and consider all sides to understand where you are right now. We often rush to find the "Next"—the next stop, the next project, the next goal—without taking the time to ask the most important question: Where are you now?

For many of us in middle age, there’s a shared history of regret, guilt, and self-blame. We have inner dramas that no one on the outside can see. On one hand, we become braver, taking on challenges we once thought were impossible. On the other hand, we become more hesitant. After too much thinking, our answer is often, "I can't." We think a lot, but we act just a little less, standing still.

But life has to move forward! When I look at old photos, sometimes I struggle to remember who that person was. How did I become so different? Is it the wear and tear of time, or the mark of a changing world? Can you imagine what your photos will look like in 5 or 10 years? Where will you be? Who will you have met? What will the occasion be? What will your mindset be like?

I don't know if it's intuition or illusion, but in the present, you have to rely on one thing: your feeling.

To figure out where you are now, consider these three dimensions:

1. Your Social Environment: Who are the people you connect with regularly? Are their lives in a place you admire? What do you talk about—your dreams or just daily life?

2. Your Life Map: Where do you spend your time each week? Do these places energize you, or are they just familiar spots you frequent out of habit? Are you actively expanding your world?

3. Your Inner Process: When you return to your core, your source, are your daily actions aligned with your passions, purpose, and values? Is what you do consistent with who you are?

   
   

You might not want to admit it, but the inner voice is a resounding NO. This is because we all want to change. We can’t change the past or control the future, but we can change our present.

Your present is defined by those three dimensions: your social environment, your life map, and your inner process.

Before you can change your present, you need to make one crucial choice: Do you want to be an audience or an actor in this lifetime?

Being an audience is easier. You watch your children grow up. You witness your company's progress. You visit tourist spots with your family. You buy tickets to listen to others speak. You are one of the many in the crowd, a part of the spectacle.

An actor, however, has different characteristics: they choose freedom, they choose to create, they choose to dig deep within themselves, they choose solitude, and they choose to work hard.

Everyone appreciates the beauty of a dancer—their incredible physique and elegant movements. But do you realize that by "training" yourself, you can become the king or queen of your own life's dance?

The best actors don't perform for others; they create from within themselves and for themselves. After a long journey, that person has changed profoundly, yet they are still themselves—the person they are meant to be, the person they love more and more.

The suffering we experience—in our careers or our relationships—often stems from a failure to create freely and to transcend ourselves.

Free creation and self-transcendence. That is the actor’s script.

When you treat yourself as an actor to be developed, you won’t have to force it. The stage will appear, and the audience will come to you.

The most common phrase I hear lately is to "connect to your authentic self."

Start mining your own well. Keep digging deeper and deeper until one day you are in awe of what you find.

I choose to be an actor. What about you?