Remember the time you thought you knew where you were going and then somewhere along the way you realized you have no idea where you’re going? Oh, like yesterday?
Sometimes we feel like our GPS system is throwing us waaaaayyy off route, but it’s still plugged in to where we said we want to go.
I didn’t come up with this GPS metaphor. I heard it from a friend who heard it from a buddy…you know…Life is like a GPS system.
You feel inspired to go somewhere beyond where you are right now. Even though it’s familiar, you’re ready to step outside of that and go a little further out and see what else you can see and experience to learn and grow.
You start out. You plug in your destination. At first you’re familiar with the roads and turns, you’ve done these roads a million times. Then you’re cruising. Going for awhile, hours even, down a road that you know is taking you where you want to go. It’s a beautiful drive. The windows are down, wind is blowing your hair back.
Then, maybe unexpectedly, maybe you saw the signs, the road ends, or you hit a detour, or you see that the blocks on this road are not navigable.
And that might bring up strong emotions in you—anger, sadness, grief, frustration, confusion.
But does it really help to blame the road that brought you there?
You saw a lot of beauty on that road, you learned some new things, it brought you beyond where you were. Just like you wanted it to.
You can grieve that things come to a close, and feel all the feels, and use all the resources you need in the process. You might use 18 different tools and techniques and ways to handle the feels.
And, it’s better than just staying stuck where you were, or worse, staying stuck at the end of that road.
Your emotions are your compass.
Those emotions are for you to experience, like sitting watching the waves hit the rocks. And then act. What do you want to feel instead? Who do you want to be?
Meet yourself where you are. You control where you go. YOU are driving the car. It may not feel like that sometimes, because most of the time we are all allowing our subconscious to drive, completely unaware.
The reality is, you can’t afford to NOT meet yourself in your emotions, even if it’s uncomfortable, it won’t last. To shove them down into the basement not only keeps you delusional about life, they’re just going to suck your energy to keep them down.
So make that turn. GPS is still taking you where you want to go. And on this next road, you are a different version of you that you’ve never been before. Yes, it’s unfamiliar and sometimes that can feel uncomfortable, a telltale sign— that is how we grow.
Life’s twists and turns lead to growth. Embrace the discomfort of the unknown; it’s where the magic happens. Soon it will feel familiar.
Then you’ll turn again. Ever notice that the closer you get to where you’re going, you start taking more turns, more quickly, and THAT’S when it can feel like you have no idea where you’re going….and then you arrive.
Stay for as long as you like. And when you’re ready to move beyond what has now become familiar, plug in a new destination into your GPS and enjoy the ride. You can handle ANYTHING that comes your way with a toolbelt full of tools that help you process as you go.
Who do you want to be? What is one step you can take today towards being that version of you?
As Dr. Seuss says, “Oh, the places you’ll go!”