“If you can find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere.” – Frank A Clark
There can be no guarantee that every plan you make is going to work out just the way you want it to. You might not achieve exactly what you were aiming for but that doesn’t mean you’re all out of options. Things don’t always go to plan, that’s life, but you don’t stop, you make a new plan and you keep moving forwards.
Think of it this way; if you’re travelling by car, there are sometimes roadworks, road closures, hold-ups and delays on the road that would take you directly to where you want to go, but if you want to get there, you simply look for alternate routes or follow the diversion signs. It’s the same in life. The path you’re on isn’t always going to take you directly to where you want to go, but if you’re prepared to take a detour, you can still get to your destination.
Let’s say it’s your goal to make a career change. To make the move, you’re going to need a new qualification. Sounds simple – just enrol on the course, pay the fee, get studying, job done. Well, that would be the direct route, but there’s a roadblock. There are three prerequisites to be able to enrol on the course, and you can only meet two of them. What do you do? You can choose to see it as the end of the road and give up on your goal, or you can choose to take a detour. As with all detours, this route will generally take a little longer, but it can still get you to where you want to go – you’re still moving.
As Michael Jordan once said…
“Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”
If you’re determined to succeed, you’re going to do whatever it takes to achieve your goal. Roadblocks and obstacles are going to block your path from time to time, but whether to stop or find a way around them is always your choice. If you stop, you can’t get to where you wanted to go, but if you look for an alternate route, you can still get there.
The journey from where you are now to where you want to be is not guaranteed to be a straight one, but no matter how many diversions you need to follow, being prepared to take them is all it takes to guarantee you’re moving closer every day.
“When obstacles arise, you change your direction to reach your goal; you do not change your decision to get there.” – Zig Ziglar
Don MacNaughton is a High-Performance Coach and has worked tirelessly to help clients achieve success in the world of sport and business over the past 15 years. The next, highly popular, NLP Diploma and Life Coaching Certificate course starts in April 2019. Click here for more information or to sign up.