
Do you ever feel like you have wandered off the path you thought your life was going to take?
Did you have a plan or even just a general outline of what you wanted from life, or were you one of the people who had more of a “let’s see what happens” attitude? Have you ended up in places you can’t even imagine? Or is this a place by default, that you didn’t really want, you just sort of ended up here?
Some people are wanderers; they ramble their way through Life. Whatever happens, they make the best of it but they are not really directing the journey, it’s more that Life is happening to them. It’s a kindness to call it ‘meandering’ rather than ‘a totally tangled, twisted knot.’
I know a couple of people who knew from childhood what they wanted to do and be, and by God, they made it happen. No deviations. Straight line. They have done what they set out to do and they’re extremely disciplined; they mapped their lives out and it all appears to have happened as planned. I think that’s unusual. And a bit scary. There is a lot of unknown in Life; how did these people deal with that? Perhaps they have superpowers I just don’t know about.
I had a list of things I wanted to accomplish in life and the ages I thought I should have them done by. I’m happy to say that I accomplished goals that are bigger and more important than the heartfelt but, um, weird ideas of my 10-year-old self. The timeline I linked the goals with is a joke, now, but for a long time, it was a rebuke. I hadn’t done enough, soon enough, well enough. Too much roaming. My path was a zigzag that turned into a curve. Shame on me. Yuck. Thinking that way was not motivating, it just induced bad feelings and actually worked to make me feel always, always, not-good-enough.
This is my never-to-be-humble opinion, but I like the blend: having a goal and working toward it, but also being open to the serendipities of Life. Rigidity would have robbed me of knowledge, experiences, and people I am glad I’ve found.
Perhaps you’re the same? Do you have unexpected little gems in your life that you stumbled upon, but are now grateful for? Or do you wish you’d had more of a structure so Life didn’t zigzag quite so much?
No matter how you’ve gotten to where you are now, straight line or a Gordian knot, how do you want your future to manifest? Planned, flexible, or a mix of the two?
If you look on your life path and see that it is winding, and especially if you have some negative feelings about that, I have a challenge for you. The challenge is twofold. 1) Trust that it’s going to work itself together into some sort of order or pattern, and 2) Decide if you want your path to continue to meander or if you’d like to do something about that, bringing at least a bit of order to chaos.
No harm no foul if you like the loops and whirls of Chance. And if you are one of those rare souls who have that direct, straight-arrow path, are you satisfied with that or do you feel like maybe, just maybe, you’re missing out? This is a website, and I’m a coach, for transformation in your life, so if you’re reading this far, I’m thinking you want to change something, somewhere~
Transformational change is my job, my calling, and what I’m good at doing. If you’re thinking about your Life and your living, and if you’re considering both your path forward and whatever it is that led you to this place, this day, this page… send me an email. I’ll have better ways to contact me soon, but for now, shari@transformmylife.org
Let’s talk.
A Quote on Trusting in Life…
“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” ~Steve Jobs