Don’t cruise through life making pit stops at the Next Big Thing. Take control of the wheel and create your own adventure.
[photo by Declan Wilson]
Nowadays, it’s hard to find a car model without gizmos and gadgets used to distract kids from driving their parents insane (and as a new father, I can somewhat see why). However, too many of us are living life like this too.
I don’t peruse Facebook often, but when I do, I’ve noticed a pattern: the Next Big Thing.
Whether it’s a new job, a new car, a new relationship, people are excited to share their next big thing. What people don’t realize is jumping from one big thing to the next is a distraction. It’s a signal of their unhappiness with their situation and unwillingness to change it.
Life is in the driver’s seat. And we’re all in the back, zoned out. Waiting for the next pitstop or kitschy tourist “attraction.”
“Are we there yet?!” we scream in unison at Life.
Don’t Wait for the Next Big Thing – Step Up and Take the Wheel
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Take the Wheel
For awhile in my early twenties, I lived on auto-pilot. Looking for the distractions, always searching for the next best thing. I never had a clear grasp on my life’s trajectory.
I danced around my calling. For awhile I thought it was film-making. Then I figured it was working full-time to support a family. Then not working and being a stay at home dad. Then being a writer.
Finally, something clicked.
I don’t have to meander through life anymore.
Like I was sixteen all over again, I wrestled the keys out of Life’s hands and took the wheel. Granted, I’m not entirely sure where I’m heading. But I’m okay with that.
Like I was sixteen all over again, I wrestled the keys out of Life’s hands and took the wheel.
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I’m driving evolving, just like you. I’m not not a kid anymore in the back seat, watching the small towns and open fields pass by me.
Instead, I’m taking in the scenery, noting the changes in terrain, feeling the car react to my desires, allowing these things to silently guide me.
Sometimes the car breaks down. Sometimes I take a detour. But one thing remains constant.
I’m in control of the adventure.
Non-metaphorical Talk
I’ll step away from the driving metaphor for now.
Although bouncing from one big thing to the next may feel as if you are in control, you aren’t.
Stepping Up and following your desire to be the person you were meant to be, that’s being in control.
Stepping Up means taking inventory of the skills, tools, infrastructure at your disposal and setting out on a journey. A journey with an unknown destination. A journey not for the faint of heart. A journey that lasts a lifetime.
Finding a way to live a meaningful life with purpose, that’s a journey. And it’s one I advise you try.
Why is Stepping Up the Answer?
When you Step Up to chase your dream, people take notice. So much that they will either ridicule you or applaud you. It doesn’t matter what they do; you got their attention.
By being the dream-chaser that you are, you make those around you better, because you show others what is possible by making the conscious decision to go after the life you were meant to live.
Keep going. We’ll follow right behind you.
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Discussion Question: Are you still in the “back seat” or have you taken the wheel of your life? Share your answer on Twitter or in the comments.
The post Don’t Wait for the Next Big Thing – Step Up and Take the Wheel by Declan Wilson appeared first on A Millennial Type.