Holes

I'll get this out of the way; this is not a 'new years resolution' post. I don't believe in them; 'resolutions' tend to end in a rinse-and-repeat cycle of failure. As the proverb says, "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." - change a bad habit or make a life choice any day you want.

Making a lasting change doesn't need to start on January 1st — readiness is the key to any change. It can be December 10th, April 12th, or whatever day pleases you.

Anyway, as 2023 came to a close, I wanted to try something different — I focused on a new "word" to guide me through the year.

It was "less".

What a total failure that was.

In many ways, "more" was the core of 2024 at an accelerated pace. Without going into the inconsequential details, it was an incredibly overwhelming year; life accelerated at a crazy pace.

As we barreled towards the end of the year, it seemed like a constant barrage of more demands, lots of change, some health speedbumps, etc. I felt mentally stuck and overwhelmed for the first time in a very long time. Not waving, but drowning.

Please don't get me wrong; I'm not writing this to make an excuse for anything - (shit happens, and you need to own it) but rather to point out how easily everyday life can get away from you. It's important to recognize when you're in a hole and start figuring out how to fill it.

I've spent a lot of time the last month reading and thinking about this, and it led me to October of 1911, wherein a piece The Washington Post called "Letting Bryan Down Easy", it was written:

Nor would a wise man, seeing that he was in a hole, do to work and blindly dig it deeper.

Later, this wisdom was re-spun as 'Healey's First Law of Holes' (or "Healey's Law of Politics" depending on the source) after politician Denis Healey. He was quoted in an interview discussing the concept.

The Law of Holes

It goes like this:

1. If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.
2. When you stop digging, you are still in a hole. Adding more shovels doesn't help you dig faster.
3. Any hole not filled now will cause more damage in the future.

Others have added to the concept with time (I read one reference with 10 laws), but you get the picture.

If not, here's a simple view:

One would think that "stop digging" is simple enough, but I've found it helpful to shift my thinking. These holes can serve a purpose.

Instead of seeing them as unfortunate, I've reframed them as opportunities to reassess. Why did you start digging that hole in the first place? Maybe it wasn't just a random hole you can't escape.

Sometimes, the hole results from being busy or chasing too many big goals. Stopping gives you the chance to pause and plan your next steps. The hole could be a place to dig smarter, climb out, or even fill with something better.

The point is — the hole isn't the end. It can be the beginning.

Holes are part of life — whether they are self-dug, accidental, or just the result of life's chaos. They can feel like inescapable traps, and I get it — that's hard.

But it's important to recognize that they aren't the end of the story. The key is to accept the hole, take a moment to look around, and make sure your energy moves you forward.

The hole isn't the problem; it's just part of the process. And it might just be the beginning of something better—because ultimately, what you do next matters.

Momento Mori. ✌🏻