RANDOM THOUGHTS ON GETTING WHERE YOU WANT TO GO
PART 5: MID-COURSE CORRECTIONS
“When life becomes dull, it's possible that we have made it that way. We often try to control everything so perfectly that joy and passion elude us. Remember, it we did it, we certainly have the power to undo it.”
---Anne Wilson Schaef
Quite often it's necessary to assess your progress and decide whether or not you need to change course. Sometimes redirection is deliberate; sometimes it is required of us. Often we desire a change because we see that we aren't really achieving the things we set out to do. And at other times, our experience on the journey gives
us new insights--wisdom--that helps us to know whether to stay on our path or to take a new one.
“The perspective one gains on life through experience comes like the morning; A bright new view of the world to illuminate the concerns of the night's dark dreams and show them for what they really are.”
--Anonymous
No matter the motivation for a change, it's important to find a balance between being unwilling to change and being too eager to change. New trails in life can be arduous--just ask those who have tried to forge new routes up Mt. Everest. But the rewards for the bold are plentiful.
Proceed with caution. But if you need to redirect your life--if you really need to "crank the wheel" to one side or the other--do it. Don't continue down any path unless you know it will lead you to your intended destination.
And by all means, don't hang on to attitudes or habits that don't help get you there. Learn to recognize a genuine need for change; and then be prepared to make the change.
If, after a careful evaluation of your position and your direction, you find that you are indeed making progress toward the goals you really want, don't look to hard. Reassure yourself and move on.
WHAT NEXT?
So you've finally achieved the goals you set for yourself. You should take a moment to congratulate yourself for what you've accomplished. What happens now? Life gives us many priorities... many important, often conflicting priorities. And it's left up to us to decide what to do with them. When you make long-range plans--plans for things beyond that for which you are now working--be sure to include the things that you feel will ultimately the most important to you.
A friend once shared with me the story of the struggles of his early career. Following college, he dedicated his life to preparation for an examination to become a licensed professional in his field. Forsaking even family, he spent every day after work studying for the test. He became so fully involved in his preparations that he soon could think of nothing else; The examination and his desire to pass it fully engulfed his life. He had one goal. And he knew he could achieve it.
The time for the examination came and he took it and passed it. The professional license was his. The goal had been reached, but his life was suddenly empty and without direction. He had been so totally obsessed with the exam that he'd never bothered to look beyond it; to plan for anything else. Worst of all, he'd lost everything--and everyone--else to which he could have turned for support.
So what next? Watch the path ahead carefully. To live, after all, is a verb. And living is a journey toward ever-changing goals we set for ourselves. For if we somehow "arrive" where we thought we wanted to be in life,... are we then still living?
No matter how lofty your goals, when you finally get to where you want to be, you should be well on your way toward something even greater.
PART 5: MID-COURSE CORRECTIONS
“When life becomes dull, it's possible that we have made it that way. We often try to control everything so perfectly that joy and passion elude us. Remember, it we did it, we certainly have the power to undo it.”
---Anne Wilson Schaef
Quite often it's necessary to assess your progress and decide whether or not you need to change course. Sometimes redirection is deliberate; sometimes it is required of us. Often we desire a change because we see that we aren't really achieving the things we set out to do. And at other times, our experience on the journey gives
us new insights--wisdom--that helps us to know whether to stay on our path or to take a new one.“The perspective one gains on life through experience comes like the morning; A bright new view of the world to illuminate the concerns of the night's dark dreams and show them for what they really are.”
--Anonymous
No matter the motivation for a change, it's important to find a balance between being unwilling to change and being too eager to change. New trails in life can be arduous--just ask those who have tried to forge new routes up Mt. Everest. But the rewards for the bold are plentiful.
Proceed with caution. But if you need to redirect your life--if you really need to "crank the wheel" to one side or the other--do it. Don't continue down any path unless you know it will lead you to your intended destination.
And by all means, don't hang on to attitudes or habits that don't help get you there. Learn to recognize a genuine need for change; and then be prepared to make the change.
If, after a careful evaluation of your position and your direction, you find that you are indeed making progress toward the goals you really want, don't look to hard. Reassure yourself and move on.
WHAT NEXT?
So you've finally achieved the goals you set for yourself. You should take a moment to congratulate yourself for what you've accomplished. What happens now? Life gives us many priorities... many important, often conflicting priorities. And it's left up to us to decide what to do with them. When you make long-range plans--plans for things beyond that for which you are now working--be sure to include the things that you feel will ultimately the most important to you.
A friend once shared with me the story of the struggles of his early career. Following college, he dedicated his life to preparation for an examination to become a licensed professional in his field. Forsaking even family, he spent every day after work studying for the test. He became so fully involved in his preparations that he soon could think of nothing else; The examination and his desire to pass it fully engulfed his life. He had one goal. And he knew he could achieve it.
The time for the examination came and he took it and passed it. The professional license was his. The goal had been reached, but his life was suddenly empty and without direction. He had been so totally obsessed with the exam that he'd never bothered to look beyond it; to plan for anything else. Worst of all, he'd lost everything--and everyone--else to which he could have turned for support.
So what next? Watch the path ahead carefully. To live, after all, is a verb. And living is a journey toward ever-changing goals we set for ourselves. For if we somehow "arrive" where we thought we wanted to be in life,... are we then still living?
No matter how lofty your goals, when you finally get to where you want to be, you should be well on your way toward something even greater.
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