Guest Author - Barbara Gibson

I’m notoriously bad with directions. My friends joke, “if you don’t want to get there, ask Barbara.” Once on a driving trip to Atlanta I looked up to find myself far past the mark…in Savannah. In my defense, it was quite dark.

The problem isn’t only that road and street signs are, unfortunately, displayed in the smallest possible font; it is also that there’s something about driving that causes me to “zone out.” When I get behind the wheel, I’m on auto-pilot; I don’t devote the attention I should to the road or route.

Some of us live our lives in much the same way. Not surprisingly, we lose our way. If you’ve been there you know it usually goes something like this…you’re living your life when you begin to feel out of alignment – like “something” just isn’t quite right. Sometimes its slight, like a nagging shadow; other times it’s an aching, screaming emptiness. You may look at your life and see that you have everything you thought you wanted…except the peace of fulfillment.

Just as you do when you take a wrong turn on the road, you must consult your (life) map and correct your course. Far more troublesome than veering off course is failing to recognize being off course. When we can’t connect our empty feeling to its source, we may try to outrun the shadow or silence the screaming with excess shopping, eating, or other practices that are comforting (at least in the short term). We want to feel better but we don’t even know why we feel bad in the first place.

If you suspect that your nagging feeling is about living out of alignment with what you really want, don’t worry. You can correct your course.

Correcting Your Course

What can you do?

Be willing to sit with your discomfort; your gut has a lot to tell you. As the old saying goes, “you cannot fix what you will not face.” As you sit, decide to be honest with yourself. Does your current course offer rewards that are important to you? Can you find creative alternatives or give them up, or will the trade offs be more valuable (e.g. employment that doesn’t offer as much monetary compensation, but is much more fulfilling)? Journaling, prayer, meditation and friends can be very helpful throughout this process.

Listen to what you hear as you sit, pray, meditate or talk. Your inner voice has a lot to tell you. At this point you don’t need to know the “how” of it, so don’t let doubt or your inner critic sabotage you.

Put yourself in places and around people that inspire and recharge you. It may be in these places that you summon the creativity and courage to work out the “how.” If not, don’t worry. Be patient, you will get there. Remember, the journey counts, too. Your purpose isn’t only to find your way, but also to enjoy the sights and experiences you collect as you travel.