For those who don’t know, I am a board member for Impact Leadership. We have been working the last year creating non-profit events for our local area to give back. We are also creating a leadership program to take what we talk about on stage to a more personal level. It’s been a lot of fun and we are all working really hard to make our dream a reality!
We had our yearly event scheduled for October 2020. In case you missed it, 2020 has been a pretty rough year. Everyone seems to be yelling at one another, not listening to what the other has to say or thinks. Political campaigns and discussions are using violence as an appropriate way to voice opinions, we are voting for who will be the next president, and we have been trying to navigate around a pandemic. It’s. Been. Rough.
So, as we met to discuss our event, we came to the conclusion that we should put it off until the Spring, and focus on what we could do. Even though it was the right decision doesn’t mean it wasn’t a hard decision or something any of us took lightly. We all have sacrificed for it and to see it put on hold feels defeating and heavy.
But, I had the thought come to my mind multiple times over that meeting, it was a thought that I have pondered for several years with my crazy life journey:
“A bend in the road is not the end of the road.”
It is so hard to go on a road that has bumps and rocks and pot holes. However, if you decide to go on it, sometimes you can navigate through those obstacles with some good old fashioned grit because, well… you chose the road.
But to have the road curve off to the left or the right, not knowing or anticipating that the road made the sharp turn….man! It scares you at first because you came up on the curve so fast, and what’s the first thing you do? Put. On. The. Breaks.
We try to stop, or slow down.
Stopping and slowing down isn’t a bad thing. It helps keep us safe. But don’t get off the road!!!
The curves in our road can make us question our goals. And maybe your goals need to change a bit. Maybe things are being created for you that you just can’t see yet.
When I have a curve in the road and I struggle to understand what it means, I focus on the small things I can do today. And tomorrow. And the next day. Big goals and visions can be hard for some to keep motivated, especially if there is a curve in the road. So stop comparing yourself to where you want to be. Just do something today you want to get done, notice things you are grateful for, take a moment to pause and breathe. Give yourself some love. Do that today. And tomorrow. Then the next day. And the one after that.
Pretty soon you will be where you never thought possible and others will look at you in awe and wonder.
Don’t ever forget….A bend in the road is not the end of the road. Just slow down a minute and watch life unfold.