You Are Your Own Cruise Director

There's this scene in the very beginning of the movie About A Boy that depicts a regular day in the main character's life.  The point of the scene is to show how meaningless his life is at that part of the movie, but what I always remember best is the phrase he uses: "You are your own cruise director."  When I take the phrase outside of the context of the movie, I have to admit that I think it's a pretty sound suggestion.  Unless we happen to live in one of those families where everyone relies on the "go-getter" of the family to plan every single fun thing we do (you all know that happens), chances are it is up to ourselves to actually think of, plan for, and then follow through with experiences that we want to have.



There are quite a few people who take part in social media that constantly lament about all the fun other people are having that they aren't.  My advice to those people is to get off the internet and go have your own fun.  While it's great to get inspired by something someone else did or to find out about things you could be doing, if the majority of your time is spent watching others do rather than doing anything yourself, it's probably time to log off (plus, once you go and do something, you can be the one posting: "Hit the bike trail today! Woohoo!! *obligatory picture inserted here*").

 

Being your own cruise director is really just as simple as thinking about what you like to do, planning to do, and then doing it.  Obviously, not everyone has the money or time or lack of relationships like the character in the movie to plan their whole day exactly the way that they want, but everyone has moments that they are in charge of.  It doesn't even have to be as complex as going somewhere new or altering your regular routine much.  You can put together a new playlist for your commute, start reading an interesting book during your lunch break, or take a couple minutes when you get home to sip a refreshing beverage and take stock of the rest of your evening.  Make small choices during your day to experience things in the way that you want to experience them.

 

The best part about being your own "cruise director" is that you will get to plan to do things you want to do the way that you want them to.  Some of us would prefer to be more leisurely while others would choose more active forms of fun.  Everyone's idea of a good time is different (for some ideas or just to see what we choose to do with our time, you can follow Daily Vacation on Facebook).  So whatever it is that you wish you could be doing, remember that you are the one making the choices in your own life.  "You are your own cruise director" - so why don't you choose to have fun.