There were a few nights at Burning Man when my friends and I spent more time chasing DJs than actually enjoying DJ sets.
…And when I say chasing DJs, I mean actually chasing DJs… on bikes… in the dessert-like environment… where DJs often play on moving art-cars… and park arbitrarily all over the event.
And I’m not just talking one or two DJs… there’s a plethora of world-renowned DJs playing multiple sets… in any given direction… at all times throughout the day… in this other-worldly environment that’s packed with shiny, neon lights wherever you look… and sounds and people and art, too… all calling for your attention and steer of your bike.
…It’s quite an impressive feat to ever find anything you aimed to attend. It’s much more common to set out for that thing and end up somewhere else completely because… squirrel.
Anyway, I digress.
The secret to maximizing your time at Burning Man is the secret to maximizing your time in everyday life—because the one isn’t that much different from the other in the sense that there’s always an endless array of things we can do…
And the secret is this: When given an abundance of choices… choose one thing fully.
If you decide to commit to a specific DJ set: commit fully.
If you decide to side-quest and have a “squirrel” moment: commit fully.
If you decide to skip it all and bring the party to you: commit fully.
And if you decide to not do anything at all: commit fully.
Each path is beautiful in its own right. What makes it not so is our desire for it to have been something else.