Life lessons from construction detours
I had an appointment a few towns over recently, so I fired up the navigation in my car. It estimated I'd arrive with more than five minutes to spare. Perfect! But then... construction detours. Three of them, to be exact. Welcome to northern NJ! Here's what happened... and what I learned.
The navigation picked my route. It wasn't the route I expected -- I assumed I'd take the highway, but it instead had me traveling the local roads. When I hit the first detour, the navigation rerouted me. When I hit the second detour, it didn't seem like the reroute made sense. The navigation kept telling me to make a left, but my gut said to keep going straight for awhile, so I did. By the third detour, I completely ignored the navigation and figured out my own route.
My last navigated step was to make a left turn into a parking lot. However, I didn't see my destination anywhere along the row of storefronts in the parking lot. I decided to park and continue by foot because I was close to where I needed to be. Lo and behold, I wandered a bit and then happened upon my destination. Unfortunately, I was ten minutes late, but I had made it. And I had a huge grin on my face. Why?
Because I had realized:
Asking a trusted advisor for help is a great place to start. We typically ask someone for guidance when we're not sure how to get where we want to go (much like turning on navigation for directions). We listen to this "voice" because we trust them and need a push in the right direction.
Expect the unexpected. The trusted advisor may suggest a route you hadn't expected. You keep an open mind and try it. It takes you pretty far. But then, some roadblocks you weren't expecting pop up along the way. Your trusted advisor suggests a detour that gets you back on track.
Trust your gut. Maybe you listen to the trusted advisor's advice... or maybe you realize you've been on this journey for awhile: you have your bearings and can forge your own path to your destination. Although you can hear your trusted advisor's voice telling you where to go, you have an intuition for a reason. Trust yourself to travel your own journey.
Keep going. It can be scary to take your own road, especially when the easy way (like staying in your car!) is more comfortable than the harder way (like going by foot in the heat!). To navigate new terrain on your own, sometimes it's as simple as putting one foot in front of the other, step by step.
Timing is everything. You will get where you are meant to be when you are supposed to be there. In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter if you're a bit "late." When you arrive on your own terms, you're right on time.
It also isn't lost on me that the navigation sent me via local roads when I was expecting to take the highway. Sometimes, we need to take a slower or longer path so we can learn some lessons along the way, rather than zipping along the fastest way possible. Not to mention, the construction detours I encountered were for road improvements. Likewise, in our journeys, the detours may be tough, but they typically allow us to evolve and grow.
I'll park it here!
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