Up The Garden Path . . .
Are your goals leading you ‘up the garden path’?
In the wrong direction?
Are you actually doing what you need to do and thinking what you need to think in order to achieve your ultimate vision or dream of what you want to be, do and have in your life – what you would love your life to be?
Or are you taking actions to achieve short term goals – which may seem important and may seem to be contributing to the ultimate vision but . . .
Are leading you on a detour –
on a ‘short cut’ (and you and I know what that usually means!) –
up a blind alley?
Or are they taking you in totally the wrong direction?
I hope not.
The thing is . . .
You and I know how to set goals, to set targets, to put plans in place, and to take action.
But what if . . .
Some of those goals aren’t consistent with the visions that you and I have of how and who we really want to be?
Here’s the thing.
Sometimes ‘stuff’ just has to be done. Sometimes things just have to be ‘got out of the way’. Sometimes you and I just have to divest ourselves of things, situations and ideas we are dragging around with us.
There’s a parable about a group of golfers who set out to play a round one morning. On reaching the third tee, one of the four, Harry, had a heart attack and died. Many, many hours later the four returned to the clubhouse and were asked where on earth they had been all this time.
They explained it had taken such a long time because every time they hit the ball they had to drag Harry around the course with them until they’d completed the game.
Are you ‘dragging Harry’.
Are the goals you are working towards being delayed because you really need to adjust your plan and do something differently rather than just pushing on regardless dragging a burden with you?
The problem is though . . .
That when you and I do that, when you and I perhaps do retrace our steps and let go of whatever is holding us up – that becomes another goal.
Distracting us from what we were wanting to achieve in the first place.
And if you and I are not very careful this ‘detour’ can easily spawn yet another ‘distraction goal’ leading us toward who knows where.
Certainly not where you and I were intending to go in the first place!
You know why ‘big’ projects are usually late and over budget? Because the same thing is happening – distraction and ‘scope creep’. Things just keep on cropping up that seem to need to be done before real progress can be made.
Questions are the answer.
So when you and I are working towards our goals and visions we need to stop from time to time and check the map, turn on the satnav (well maybe not, who knows where that might take us!), and make sure we are going in the right direction and following the best route.
Especially when we’ve had to take Harry back to the clubhouse before continuing the round.
Especially when we’ve been delayed in our journey through no fault of our own.
And especially when you and I are tempted by ‘bright shiny objects’ in the form of new ideas or new ‘stuff’ that we think we just must have.
Is this ‘new goal’ consistent with what you and I want to be, do and have? Is it consistent with what you and I would love our lives to be?
I’m asking, are you?
Have an interesting week.