Topic of the day: The next step of your journey
Have you already thought about the next step of your journey?
I always like to make this question to myself in order to clarify what I really want to do, where I want to be and with whom I would like to share my precious time. In my experience so far, life can be considered a journey, an epic journey in fact. For all the things I’ve been through, all the places I’ve been and so many people who I’ve met so far… Most things that happen to us are made to build our character, make us stronger and test us in different ways…preparing us for the next stage.
We pass through many cycles, starting with childhood when we have plenty of time to discover the world and have fun. At this stage, we learn so much in such a short time. And then things start to get serious, when we have to make some choices like what we would like to do professionally, which studies should we follow, and so on. During the early stages of adulthood, we still play like a kid, but the surrounding world is always pushing us to be more responsible and think about the future — it is part of the evolution. We create some relationships, break others, meet a bunch of interesting people and start doing fun things together, and then we change again our hobbies, preferences for traveling, partying, music, make new friends…
The experience achieved through work changes us in many different ways. Relationships there, sometimes, are not our choice, and eventually, we get well with our fellows and environment, lying in what it’s called the comfort zone. I always tried hard to escape this area, because for my evolution I need new challenges. It’s compared to muscle strength. If we don’t push the boundaries, if we don’t train hard, then there’s no gain. And for many people, this gain happens through pain. Some people avoid this like hell. The expression “no pain no gain” is not so friendly for them. Especially because the comfort zone is like it says: “comfortable”.
However, when you feel that you are in this area, my advice is to look back to where you came from and see if this is the final stop you want to be. If the answer is yes, then just stay there. People shouldn’t judge you because you achieved your dream faster than them.
For most people, on the other hand, they don’t want to stay where they are, but they lack the bravery to take the next step. Well, life is a sequence of choices and the next step of your journey is totally up to you.
You have to acknowledge that your thoughts determine your future. The people who surround you are an important part of this puzzle. You may not be able to choose what happens to you, but for sure you can choose how to respond to it. Resilience is built through exercising. When you know where you want to go, even some drawbacks won’t take you out of the route. You could probably take different routes, but always envisioning the same end.
If you haven’t done this yet, I suggest you make some drafts of your brilliant future, the place you’d like to be or the things you’d like to have achieved. These are strong drivers for pumping your motivation up in many ways. It’s a long way, I reckon, but take one step at a time.
Plan your next big move, and after doing that take at least one step each day towards this future. You’ll be amazed at how much you can accomplish if you have a purpose to do so. Even when you are not so motivated, keep going… Remember of your big picture and the destination you want to reach. Each step counts, even if a small one.
There are several ways to get to the same end; it’s up to you to make choices wisely along the way. If you’re building your knowledge and resilience, you’ll probably be prepared to make those choices. It can even be fun. You may end up in a different place, but probably this is where you were supposed to be if you made your own choices.
Life is not static; it’s a constant change.
