Stop Blowing It

We all think spinning out of control means you have to blow it all up… but just because you keep blowing it, doesn’t mean you have to.

Take a break and hit reset.

A few weeks ago I ran over a few bananas and it sent me spinning. I tried to hit B but I couldn’t quite keep my kart on the track. So after crashing a bit, I hit reset, got back in my kart and now I’m writing to you, so when you crash, you can do the same.

Sorry, I missed you these past few weeks… but enjoy the perspective that came out of slipping on some bananas!

You are aware that on the back of N64 games, it says, in BOLD…

”CAUTION, DO NOT BLOW ON THE EDGE CONNECTORS”

AKA when the game freezes do not BLOW profusely into the game cartridge with all your hot breath and saliva, then stick the game back in the console and hammer the on switch. I know in your head it “works” but eventually it will wreck the game and potentially the console. You will blow it all up eventually.

We all know there is a reset button that works just fine and yet we LOVE to keep blowing it. Something goes wrong, fuck it I am trying to get to Rainbow Road so I am just gunna push harder.

The harder you push, the more life pushes back.

The more you force it, the more you will blow it, and the bigger the potential blow-up in the end.

So what if you took a step back?

It’s hard to do… but what if you just hit reset? Or what if you shut it down for a bit and came back to it when you were ready?

Just because it feels like you are blowing it, or have blown it in the past, doesn’t mean you have to KEEP blowing it. Just STOP.

Take a few days to yourself and hit reset. Instead of telling yourself it is another full rebuild, realize it is just a reset!

Just like in Mario Kart, in life, your progress is saved. You are still better than you were. You may be starting the same race over again, but now you have that much more experience heading into Lap 1.

💡Here are a few things I have learned these past few weeks that have helped me start racing again:

🍄Stop trying to be Mario all the time
We all know Yoshi is the best character in the game. Stop trying to be the hero all the time. Be you, and accept what you can and can’t do right now.

”Don’t try to be something you are not”

🐢Stop trying to juggle 3 shells and a bonus item
Sometimes it feels oh-so good to hold on and protect yourself. But while you hold on to things, you lose the opportunity to pick up new maybe even better items. Let go and see what happens. Take the race as it comes.

”The more you try to hold onto everything the more it slips through your fingers, let go when you need to”

🔥Don’t blame Bowser
I get it, Bowser can be a dick. The guy is just always lurking, trying to shoot you with that BLUE shell that you can’t doge.

In life, Bowser is you. Bowser is that negative voice in your head.

”Don’t blame anyone else, don’t even keep blaming yourself. Forgive and move forward.”

🍌Expect to spin out again, sometimes you have to hit the banana head-on
So you finally accepted you are Yoshi. You started using all your items and you forgave Bowser and now he no longer hovers over you. He is stuck far away in 8th place.

You are winning again and in a few months, you may even win Rainbow Road and the final Grand Prix. Congrats🎉

But as you drive up to that castle to collect your trophy just remember… they have made 7 more Mario Kart games across like 4 consoles😲

There is always another race and there will always be more bananas.

”Spinning out is part of life, don’t try to dodge every problem. Sometimes avoiding bananas makes you spin out too. Tackle problems head-on when it’s required, and just be ready to hit the breaks if you need to.”

No matter what, you will get through the spin-outs and be better for it.

Let go, keep racing, and stop blowing hot moisture into things from the past.

Forever racing,

Connor

PS. If you don’t know this by now you should. In Mario Kart 64 if you hit a banana and perfectly time B afterward (aka hit the brakes), your character won’t spin out.

I forget this over the past few months, but you don’t have to. Don’t avoid things just hit the brakes when you need to, even Mario has to sometimes.