There’s that famous quote – “Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.” But what does that really mean? Like most great quotes, the meaning is simultaneously and paradoxically simple to interpret and very very difficult to understand at a deep level. Surface wise, do the right thing. Deeper wise, do the right thing. But it’s not so simple because if it was, everyone would 1. Do the right thing, 2. Accurately assess what the “right thing” is 3. Eliminate the outcome/result/”what is gained” from doing said action from your conscious when making a decision to do that thing …. VERY few people hit that quote on all 3 levels.

How does one assess what the right thing is? How does one know what apple tree to plant? Where do they plant this tree? When do they do it? With whom? How big is the tree? All these questions metaphorically we are tasked with every day for the decisions in life. Ultimately, much of it boils down to removing external factors from our decision making, removing peer influence from our mental thought processes, listening to ourselves really, being an obedient listener really, recognizing how we FEEL – and that doesn’t mean mentally, that means literally how does your body feel when you think about each potential move, how does your heart feel when your words come out of your mouth, when you think a certain thought – are you comfortable or uncomfortable? These sort of reflections will help one get in the right space to even interpret what the right thing is …

And then from there, it really boils down to having the courage and intelligence to plant the tree appropriately – do the right thing consistently, do the most authentic thing for you that impacts yourself and the world as positively as possible in the long race of life. And the key aspect of planting your tree is this: it doesn’t matter if the tree ever comes to life! Whatever happens after the tree’s planted should not factor into your decision process on planting that tree. It doesn’t matter if the world goes to shit and it falls down if you still DID THE RIGHT THING. It doesn’t matter if people recognize what you did or not if you DID THE RIGHT THING. It doesn’t matter if you get credit, it doesn’t matter if people hate you, if they misunderstand you, if they don’t get you, if you’re broke, if you’re not popular, if whatever. What matters is what you did with the tree. If you did the right thing, and planted your apple tree appropriately day in and day out – that’s the ultimate achievement and from those genuine, pure intentions to plant that tree – THAT is what is recognized by the only judgement that really matters. And if that judger says at the end of your day “Well Done”, then so be it. Plant that apple tree.