It’s Not Going To Be What You Think

I have been slowly plugging away at my 40×40 list since writing it a few weeks ago. Two items on the list have been occupying the majority of my time: 18) Applying for the Master of Science in Management and Organizational Leadership degree at Warner Pacific College and 12) preparing for my trip to Haiti in January.

The best advice that I have heard from students and professors at Warner Pacific College has been this: Get Organized. With that, I have been cleaning my office, getting rid of clutter, finishing projects for work and attempting to write each day regardless of being inspired or not.

On top of that advice, I was inspired by a conversation with a friend this week to remember that my life will not change just because I crossed something off my list.

For 20 years I held to the belief that if I lost weight, my life would change instantly. Guess what? I lost all the weight and I was still me. I still had my problems. My issues didn’t disappear.

Seth Godin wrote about The Paradox of Expectations in which he sets forth the idea that the best approach to life is living without expectations. Perhaps this is just another way of saying that it is better to live life enjoying the journey as opposed to the destination?

As I begin a new chapter in my life, I realize that I am on a journey and I will change because I am traveling from A to B. When I arrive at B, as long as I am charting the next passage to C, I will be living a life free from expectations.

However, when I stop at B, look around and see that not much is different, I must rememer that the only way to really see a difference in my life is to go from A (birth) to Z (death) and see just how much I have grown, learned, changed and experienced living a journey-oriented life.

So, with that, the goal that you think will change your life? It most likely won’t, but it will be another piece in the puzzle of your life that defines who you are, what you do, and what people will say about you.