It's very likely that you’ve been on a road trip at some point in your life. Maybe it was with your family when you were growing up, or it was a class trip when you were in middle school or high school, perhaps it was a graduation gift when you got out of college and you traveled to Europe or various historical or cultural destinations within the United States. With the road trip analogy in mind, just for a minute, review the aspects of that road trip.
You probably stopped along the way for meals. You likely stayed in hotels or perhaps with family members or friends. During that road trip you saw sites. Quite possibly during your trip the driver, whether it was your parent or a bus driver or yourself, may have taken what seemed to be a wrong turn, and that may have appeared to derail your whole plan. How would your trip, with the wrong turn, be perceived if you approached it with a new and inquisitive perspective rather than angst and doubt? What was perceived as a wrong turn actually enabled you to see different scenery. You may have come across a cool historical site or perhaps a really awesome café or a unique tourist attraction that you didn’t even know was in that area. With every turn, every new street, there was something new and exciting and there were many opportunities to go off in different directions.
Just like that planned trip, plans to reach our goals and achieve our dreams can appear to derail. But in reality, it’s all about perspective. What if you change your mind set about your path toward your goals and dreams? The saying, “Life happens”, is real. Life does happen, and more often than not, we cannot control it. The company that we work for may go out of business. A relationship that we were heavily invested in may end for any number of reasons. Perhaps the place where you live is no longer an option for a home. Regardless, you continue to have choices and options even if they are difficult to recognize in the emotional midst of whatever is going on in your life today. Let’s switch things up. Let’s start with what we do have. Call it a Gratitude List.
Make a list of all the things that you are grateful for right now. Go ahead! Grab a pen or a pencil or a marker. Get some paper. Any kind. It doesn’t matter. Something to write on. This is a simple exercise that no one is going to see or read except you. There’s no formality here.
Start your list by looking around you. What do you see that you’re thankful for? What thoughts come to mind regarding gratitude?
• a piece of furniture or décor item that you absolutely love
• a special book
• your pet
• your phone that connects you to your friends and family
• a memory of a great meal that you had in recent days
• the air that you breathe
• the chair or sofa or bed that you're sitting on
• your body
• your mind
These are just some examples. Keep the list going as long as you want to. How are you feeling now? Are you feeling calmer? Is your mind opening to new ideas? Are you feeling more optimistic about the possibility of options unseen?
Just like your trip that seemed to go off track, your path to your goals and dreams may seem to have derailed at this point. But in actuality, your path has simply taken another turn. Your goals and dreams are still there. They are in front of you. You can see them. Whatever has happened that seems to be a derailment is just a new path or maybe it's a little side road and you’ll get back on the track that you were on. It could be a crossroad and you’ll now have the option to go in a completely different direction. Regardless of what exactly it is, in the whole scheme of things your goals and your dreams are still there. They are still attainable. You will achieve that which you work for!
#Goals #Dreams #LifePlan #Gratitude #LifeCoach