There Is No Such Thing As "Living In The Moment"

I don't know why YOLO wont go away. WHY WON'T IT JUST GO AWAY? If you're reading this, and use the acronym YOLO, please stop. If you're under the age of 22, you're terrifying. If you're over the age of 22, you're beyond redemption. Either way, a fairy dies every time you say YOLO. Think about that. YOLO is the catch cry of "living in the moment," but not only does YOLO make people cringe into themselves every time they hear it, the concept is utterly ridiculous. Yes, you technically only live once, but living once isn't carte blanche to act like a jerk. It's actually a really good reason to be pretty sensible most of the time.

The kind of people who say YOLO are the same people who shot Jager bombs. They're the same people still wearing those slit-y, fluorescent, Kanye West sunglasses. You do not want to be this person. Nor do you want to be the other kind of YOLO person, who is all about more "namaste" impulses. This is the logic of YOLO, where everyone is all about traveling with the wind and getting into cultish orgies. Get a grip, people. "The moment" is an absurd place to live, not in the least because the moment will betray you later, when you have to deal with the consequences of your actions. Here are nine reasons why there is no such thing as living in the moment:

1. Because there is going to be a moment after this one

So you live in a moment. What happens in the moment after that? For instance: you kiss a boy you like. Meanwhile, a moment later, your boyfriend texts you. Every moment is followed by another moment, and those later moments will hold you accountable.

2. And another one after that

If you're lucky, your life is going to be filled with moments. Just one after the other. If you want to live healthily and happily throughout these, you can't always just be making spur of the moment decisions. Sure, you can go for an impromptu night of dancing. You can have a "naughty" slice of pizza. But if you live all your moments like this, as already addressed, the future moments might not be happy about it.

3. Because things cost money

Living in the moment is going to cost you. Deciding to take a spur of the moment trip, drinking more, buying that expensive dress. All this moment living will really add up, and unless you're Kardashian rich you should probably think about how much you actually have to spend to live in the moment.

4. Because you have responsibilities

In life, you have responsibilities. To yourself, your loved ones, your work, and society in general. If living in the moment is going to contravene those responsibilities, that pretty much renders your desire to live in the moment mute.

5. Because you have to think of other people

If you're acting like an asshole in public because of some kind of seize the moment bullsh*t, or if you're hurting people in your life because of it, then you need to reassess what your life is actually about. If living in the moment means being selfish, then it's not practical. Being selfish is bad. Being kind and thoughtful is good.

6. Because you can't have everything you want all the time

Back to the Kardashians — you're not some spoiled brat who can just click their fingers and have an Oompa Loompa now. Even the Kardashians aren't that bratty. Life restricts you. Deal with it.

7. Because there are repercussions for your actions

Everything you do in this life, you'll revisit later. So the immediate gratification of moment living might not feel so great months down the track when you've got crabs.

8. Because we all have priorities

Rarely does "living in the moment" make the top of the list. Probably, "being alive", "not getting hurt", "maintaining relationships", "being employed" all do though.

9. Because get a grip, you're an adult, and this is real life, not a Drake song

This is your life. And yeah, you only get one chance at you, so instead of adopting inane philosophies like "live in the moment", why don't you try "being a good person", "having healthy habits" and "working hard to achieve your dreams"? I don't know about you, but ALL of those sound much more appealing to me than being YOLO.

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