So focused on money, status, work, social media and what others think. Living life based on what others think is cool. Making decisions or lack there of with no real direction. I have this one question I like to ask myself that I want to share with you.
I sooooo used to be her. The one described above. Aimlessly wandering through life. Young and unaware of how precious each moment is. Hurt by others and believing it’s okay. Life is supposed to be this way.
Consider this:
‘If you could see your entire life from start to finish, the good, the bad, all of it…would you do anything differently than do you today?’
I ask myself this question once or twice a year when I set goals.
This one question gives me most of the perspective I need to know if I’m on track living the life to the fullest.
Every decision is a fork in the road, a point in time that changes the path. Left or right? Up or down? Yes or no? Forward or back? Choose or let the choice be made for you.
We are so aggressive with so many aspects of life yet aren’t always clear on the big picture.
I’ve always been a big picture kind of girl. I love planning and mapping out options and making a decision. I just didn’t know what kind of big picture I wanted and I don’t love getting into details. Especially if the details are math oriented. Cringe.
But I challenge myself to make sure my day to day actions line up to goals and eventually to the outcomes I want to be known for.
So, what to do when life isn’t going your way? Ask yourself this one question and follow through with these 2 steps:
Question: ‘If you could see your entire life from start to finish, the good, the bad, all of it…would you do anything differently than do you today?’
Step 1: Make a list of everything you would do differently.
Step 2: Prioritize that list. The top 3 are your goals for the next 12 months.
Believe it or not that is how I live. That’s how I make decisions. That’s how I constantly adjust my perspective and challenge what is possible.
Sometimes I work down the list because it remains the same. Other times my list evolves and that’s okay too!
If I could see my life from start to finish, the good, the bad, all of it…I’d want to know that I took more risks, did the things that scared me, spent time with loved ones, listened to my heart, looked people in the eye, say what I actually think and live for experiences while making a positive impact on the world.
So time to ask yourself this one question and challenge the way you live life! Are you ready?
Jordanna
Hi Jordanna,
Again… love your articles and this one in particular. I JUST had this sort of conversation with my gf last night who is not only stunning but put together, yogi, mindful, so loving and a great Mom. We were all out on Saturday night and she didn’t have a date and we were with out bf’s and all of us girls are authentic and beautiful (same goes for our bf’s). But she called me last night cryinh that, with all the goal setting and focus she has, she feels empty and lonely without a man. Now listen… I don’t judge on how peeps feel, especially my gf’s. I didn’t need to convince her she’s all that and then some because I know she knows that but I did ask her to consider one thing. I said, you’ll never hear me say “don’t give so much of yourself” because that would be diminishing the beautiful you. Maybe next time you venture out to meet someone you like, when the time is right, compare your top 3-5 governing values. You’re not upset because you and your ex bf broke up – you’re upset because he kept you a secret for 4 months and that violated every value you espouse! You know what’s worse than being with Mr. Wrong for 4 months? 4 months and 1 day LOL.
On a whole other note: I come from the FranklinCovey world and grew up there and feel super blessed to be steeped in all that great learning. They are the founders and leaders in the goal setting and personal constitution world. Even although I KNEW all the ways to set goals and know what forward is, when I returned to Canada – I couldn’t do it. I was paralyzed. Frightened. Questioned everything about myself, not just for months…. but when I look back it was a few years. Months of “how am I going to pay all my bills this month, fees my daughter and what kind of Morher would ever be in this situation?” So…. everyday my goal was to reach out to one person per day asking for some coaching tips whether I knew the people or not. But my goal was one per day and I just did it until I could do it alone. Then I sat for weeks and wriote my mission (who am I really?) then vision (where is it I really want to beans Is it really about money?) and what values (or rules of the game will I play by?). One thing I was determined to do that was a real game changer is, please do it call me for business development help just to get 25% of YOUR business. I will not get out of bed for less than .,,,,, per month. Changed everything and therefore I was able to affect change in other parts of my mission.
Know this Jordanna: 2 of these people I reached out to were you and your Dad!!!! So you see, if but not for people like you and your Dad, I might be behind by a month or more 🙂 And you can tell him that from me 😘
Hugs,
Susan