Hundreds of millions of people were watching television. It has been an intense decade of relentless work, without rest. Expectation was at an all-time high. Too much was at stake. It was 20 July 1969, and two American astronauts were about to become the first humans to set foot on the moon.
Eight years earlier, President Kennedy had inspired an entire nation by announcing his goal of putting a man on the moon before the end of the decade. That same day, by leaving his foot mark on the lunar surface, Neil Armstrong would in turn inspire a whole generation of young people.
One of those children was Chris Hadfield. At just nine years old, watching Neil Armstrong on the moon on television, he decided he wanted to be an astronaut. Just another child, one might think, among all those who wished to become astronauts that day.
The only thing is that 43 years later, Chris Hadfield was about to make his third space trip, and was also appointed head commander of the International Space Station.
What would an astronaut do?
Having watched on television that evening how man landed on the moon, Hadfield decided to become an astronaut. The problem was that, as aerospace interest was relatively new, there was no pre-established path to becoming an astronaut. NASA had been in existence for barely a decade. Hadfield was Canadian, and Canada didn’t even have a space agency then.
Most people would have given up before they started. But not Hadfield. What Hadfield decided to do was quite remarkable for a nine-year-old boy. As he recounts in his book An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth, “I had only one choice. I had to imagine what an astronaut would do if he were nine years old, and then do exactly the same. Would he eat vegetables or french fries? Would he sleep late or get up early to read a book?”
At first glance, one might think that there is no direct relationship between eating vegetables or getting up early to read a book and being an astronaut. And that is true. But the benefit of the questions Hadfield asked himself was not about eating healthier or reading more books.
What was really important in that question was the kind of person he was becoming.
Who are you becoming
Becoming an astronaut is a very difficult goal. It requires skills very few people have. There are hundreds of thousands of candidates, but only a few spots. And it also doesn’t help that in any goal we pursue, there are always factors beyond your control such as luck or risk.
You may not be born at the right time. Or in the right country. Maybe on one of the space programme’s journeys there is an explosion that kills the entire crew, as happened with Challenger, and spaceflight would be put on hold for years pending review. Or there could be a war, and space travel would be put on the back burner. Or perhaps the astronaut candidate could be on the verge of becoming an astronaut but suffer an illness that prevents him from travelling into space (Hadfield was very close to experiencing this).
I don’t mean to imply that luck is all that matters. How skilled and competent you are plays an important role. If you are unlucky you may not be an astronaut, but if you have no skill then you will never be an astronaut.
When Hadfield wondered whether to go to bed late or get up early to read a book, he was increasing his chances of being an astronaut. He was becoming the kind of person who is disciplined and knows how to work hard to achieve his goals. He was practising perseverance and self-control. He was aware that being an astronaut was complicated, but every time he asked himself that question and answered it, it was as if he was saying to himself: I’m not giving up.
No one knows what the future will bring. But in a way your choices determine what you will get out of life. Imagine a future of endless possibilities. You want to run a marathon? You’re less likely to run a marathon if you don’t exercise or eat healthy. Do you know where you want to work? No, but if you don’t spend time learning, you are less likely to get a job you like.
We often don’t realize that we are constantly changing. Heraclitus once said: “No man can cross the same river twice, because neither the man nor the water will be the same”.
Every decision we make influences, even if only remotely, the kind of person we are becoming. That is why the questions Hadfield asked himself are so important. His chances of becoming an astronaut were negligible, almost zero, but if he didn’t ask himself that question and act on it, his chances would be zero. His actions opened up new avenues of possibility.
Step by step
As James Clear says in his book Atomic Habits, “Every action you take is a vote for the kind of person you want to become”.
If the goal you are pursuing is ambitious, it is very likely that sooner or later you will feel overwhelmed. When that happens, remember E.L. Doctorow’s insight: “Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as the headlights can reach, but then you can make the whole trip.”
You don’t need to visualise the whole road to start walking. You just need to see a little further ahead. Like when Hadfield was nine years old and wondered what an astronaut would do.
If your goal is to become a healthier person but you don’t know what to do, you can do like Hadfield and ask yourself: Would an athlete go for a run or lie on the couch?, would an athlete eat junk food or healthy food? And once you have the answer, act. You don’t just lie on the couch, you go for a run. Even if it’s just a few meters.
If your goal is to become a writer but you don’t know how to fight procrastination, you can ask yourself: Would a writer let go of that emotion or would he or she start writing anyway? And once you have the answer, you act. You don’t give up, you start writing. Even if it’s just a few words.
It’s like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as the headlights reach, but you can make the whole journey.
One might think that such small actions are not enough to achieve big results. True, but only if you only look at the short term. A day or even a couple of weeks is not enough time to make a difference, but several months and years will make a big difference. Small actions over a long period of time can lead to extraordinary results. Small actions can help you achieve big goals and, in the process, have the ability to change the kind of person you become.