Your Turn is Ahead

How long is it going to take for me to get there? Have you ever set a goal but along the way to reaching your goal, you became flustered and downright frustrated, and you asked yourself; how long is it going to take for me to get there? If someone could truthfully and correctly answer that age old question, there would be no lesson learned in the art of patience, the art of persistence, and the art of follow-through.

Years ago, I set my mind on accomplishing some very specific goals with all of the parameters in place knowing that I had a foolproof strategic plan. The problem with the plan was that I did not have the knowledge or the capacity to build in room for errors in the plan. Needless to say, I did not accomplish some of the expected outcomes in the timeframe that I wanted to achieve. Missing the mark was not because I did not try with everything in me rather, I did not account for external obstacles, resource availability, and simply put; life was happening!

We can find ourselves on a journey, yet we are no longer living in the days where most people utilize a map or road atlas to get to the places that they have never been or are unfamiliar with. It is common now that people with a specific destination in mind, that they rely upon a navigational system. As a goal-oriented person that is traveling with the expectation of arriving somewhere by a specific time, one would insert time for errors, miscalculations, and even the detours. The wisdom in this is that one would rather commit to an early arrival than to arrive late. It is often a delightful surprise when I set out on a mission, and I arrive early. Don’t be fooled to think that because you have an early arrival to the destination, that it is in your best interest. There are times that when we arrive at a destination too early, things are not ready for our early arrival which can then lead to frustration all over again.

It is important to understand your own strategic plan for your specified goals and outcomes. Take the time to give thought and even voice to what the ramifications would be if you were to arrive at your destination too early or too late. Finding the right balance can be tricky but is well worth the planning and the lessons learned along the way.

The question that everyone should endeavor to ask themselves truthfully is are you spending too much time looking back to see where you came from? Looking in the rear-view mirror from time to time is a good idea but spending too much time looking behind you can cause you to miss your exit! The road ahead has purpose although it can be laborious. The faithfulness and consistency in fostering a strategic style of patience, persistence and follow-through will be rewarded with great outcomes. Release yourself from the danger zones of frustration because your turn is just ahead.