Between work, professional development, personal development, passion projects, college, dad stuff, and life’s curveballs it’s not unusual for my wife to poke her head into my office at 5:30 pm and tell me I still haven’t told her what I want for breakfast.
It's also not unusual for a naysayer or two to chime in with a back-handed compliment about how my drive is hurting myself or my family.
“Give yourself a break.”
“Stop trying to do so much.”
“You should spend more time with your family.”
But some of us are just driven, and to tell us any of the above is to tell us to stop breathing.
Now, I won’t be going to space anytime soon (ever), but I do have a handful of goals across various life domains that seem lofty - borderline arrogant - when listed out, yet perfectly reasonable when taken one-at-a-time.
And anytime I feel myself listening to those well-meaning voices, or giving credibility to the naysayers who raise an eyebrow at the scope of my vision alone, I look at guys like Jonny Kim and remember that, big picture, there’s a good chance I’m still aiming low.
It's taken me a while to come to terms with my drive. And until I did, I had to navigate both the exhaustion that comes from the actual work and the exhaustion from the guilt and shame of doing so much work.
“I love you and I know you mean well, but I’m fine and will let you know when I need a break.”
“Let me worry about what I should or shouldn’t want. You worry about yourself.”
If you’re driven - to the point friends and family worry about you - and you want to play your own game, get comfortable with some variation of the above statements. You’ll need them if you’re ever going to live true.
And that’s the real power of Jonny Kim's story: it gives ambitious people like us permission to ignore the naysayers and try.
Driving yourself harder than most people can fathom is just our nature. To listen to the voices, even the well-meaning ones, dishonors that nature. It dishonors our very existence.
Only by allowing ourselves to set and pursue these absurdly wide-ranging, sky-high goals without shame or apology do we honor ourselves. Only then do we live true.
Have a great trip up there, Jonny.
Alumnus Jonathan "Jonny" Kim '12 (BA) is heading to space!
NASA announced that Kim will serve as a flight engineer and crew member on the upcoming Expedition 72/73 mission to the International Space Station (ISS). Launching in March 2025 aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft, Kim will spend approximately eight months aboard the ISS, conducting crucial scientific research and technology demonstrations.
This marks Kim's first mission to the ISS and makes him the second Torero to ever launch into space! Join us in congratulating Kim on this incredible achievement and wishing him well as he continues to prepare for his expedition to space.
https://bit.ly/3yUQWqN
📸 NASA
