Is it time to change direction?

While traveling unfamiliar roads on our road trip last week, my partner and I relied fairly heavily on navigation. We may live here, but it’s fair to say that we don’t know our way around the whole state (maybe half?).

Every time we would divert from the route it set out for us — whether we had missed a turn or were intentionally diverted by a beautiful vista or saw heavy traffic we wanted to avoid — it had one thing to say to us.

Rerouting.

Each time we encountered an obstacle, got distracted or veered off course, our trusty little app would attempt to put us right back on track, sometimes on a faster route, sometimes in comical ways. It would navigate us back to the highway. Or re-route us down a convoluted set of side streets to ensure that we still arrived at the destination. Sure, we might be later than planned and we might get there a different way, but we’d get there.

Reinventing our life or our career is like this. There are places where we will veer off course. Encounter obstacles. Get distracted. Consider an alternative route.

Often, the key to putting ourselves back on course, personally or professionally, is the awareness that we’re feeling misaligned and the willingness to consider adjustments and alternatives. We are at choice. We have the ability to do this at any time. (That doesn’t mean that the course correct won’t require intentionality, and strategic action. It will.)

If you’re unsure of your direction, feeling stuck in place or the journey you’re on is taking far longer than it needs to take, consider a few places where you might want — or need — to change course.

Your mindset

Sometimes, it’s the thinking that we bring to a situation that is keeping us from our path or not getting us the result that we want. Research shows that mindfulness, growth mindset, optimism, design thinking and other cultivated (learnable!) mindsets can support us in effectively navigating change. Limited, fixed, restricted mindsets may hinder us. Oftentimes, we’re not entirely aware of which mindset we may be operating within. Bring awareness to what you believe about a situation, and see how it may be coloring how you see it, feel about it and how you’re showing up within that situation.

What you’re focused on

Where is your focus taking you lately? Is that focus moving your forward or holding you back? Is it an intentional focus, or a default reaction? Maybe you’ve heard the adage “what you focus on expands.” An honest energy audit can show you where your time, energy, mind and resources are focused — and whether a few changes here might put you back on track.

Who you’re listening to

In today’s fast paced, rapidly changing world, we are all surrounded by plenty of noise. Well-meaning (or less-than-well-meaning) people in your life, voices from people in your past, old stories you’ve been handed down about what you should be doing and how can all be at play. Marketing messages, social media, social influences may also be distracting or influencing you. Don’t allow yourself to be run by committee. Evaluate what you’re letting in and take on board only what helps you grow. Give yourself a reprieve from the rest.

What you’re telling yourself

It’s not always the voices of others who lead us down the wrong road. Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy, telling ourselves all kinds of crazy stories that start to sound like truth. If that’s the case, reflecting on your assumptions, beliefs and well-worn storylines can start to create more space between you and your unhelpful thoughts. Practicing this can help to shift that bully driver out of the way so that you can let your inner GPS drive for a while.

Your expectations

If we don’t expect that we’ll reach our destination, it’s unlikely that we’ll keep driving in that direction. If we’re holding on so tight to what we expected to see, chances are excellent that we’ll miss much of the delight of the journey. What we expect is deeply influential in the results we create in part because our brains are designed to predict outcomes with the input and experience that they have. As we create new inputs and assumptions, we’re able to see more possibilities.

How you're driving

Are you racing down the road in a constant rush, missing important turns and beautiful, awe-inspiring moments along the way? Not trusting that the next turn is really "the right one" to take? Slow down and notice your typical pace and approach. When it comes to creating sustainable success and true fulfillment, how we are being is just as important — sometimes more important — than all of the actions we might take.

That road you “knew” was right

Are you married to the idea of taking a certain path, even when there are clear obstacles continually presented to you all along the way? Even when the path now seems to be taking you in a direction that feels off? What would happen if you let go of the need to take this particular road and opened your mind to exploring other routes that might lead to the destination that you’re truly aiming for.

Where is your life calling out for you to re-route yourself? Is it in your career? Your business? Your personal wellbeing or stress levels? Your personal dreams and goals?

How might you re-tune your internal GPS to put yourself clearly on course to your most desired destination?