Who holds the key
to your destiny?
If you don’t have an intentional plan for your life, you are handing the keys of your destiny to someone else and you may not like where they take you. When we are born our parents set our a plan for our growth and development. When we get into school the school system sets out a plan for our growth and development. If we go to college the major we choose sets out a plan for our growth and development. If we join the military, they set our a plan for our growth and development. If we are fortunate enough to work for a company that has a plan for developing their people then they decide how and where you will grow.
Most of us grew up with the mentality that someone else, who is smarter than us, will determine our future. Once we graduate high school we may make the decision to go to a particular college, join the military or begin a career but once we make that decision we turn off our brains and let someone else guide our future. The problem with that is it may not be the future we want.
This past weekend I happened to catch an old Tyler Perry movie, Good Deeds. This is a story of a business man who is at the height of success. He is the head of a successful company, where he just negotiated a merger that would solidify to companies future for years to come and he is engaged to a beautiful and successful woman. He has great standing in his community and is well respected across the board. The problem is he isn’t happy. This was never his dream. This was his father’s dream. He was groomed and developed into a position and life he didn’t want. In the end, he took back control of his life, left everything behind to pursue what was in his heart.
Although this was a fictional story, it happens all of the time. I spoke with a brilliant young man just a few weeks ago that is about to embark on a college career he doesn’t want. He received a full scholarship to a prestigious school but he is following his parents dream for him and hoping things will turn out ok. I talked to a young professional a few months ago that told me about some anxiety he had because his direct supervisor was responsible for managing his career and he didn’t think he was doing a good job.
In all of these scenarios the people had abdicated the responsibility for their own growth and future to someone else. Just because we can do something doesn’t mean we should. When I was a young professional, my first big corporate job was in accounting. I moved up through the ranks for a few years hoping that I would get moved to a different department. However, since I was competent in what I was doing and the company had a need in the accounting area, they continued to push me to grow and develop those skills. Rising to the top levels in the accounting world was not in my heart. I realized that I had a choice to make. I could stay at my current company and grow the way they wanted or I could take the responsibility for my own growth and pursue other opportunities. Needless to say, I left and have never regretted not staying in that career track.
But I’m not done growing. At this mid point in my life my goal is to fully live until I die. I don’t have a dream of sitting in a rocking chair someday discussing the weather and the latest pills I’m taking with friends and family. I dream of living out my purpose in every aspect of my life and having something to contribute till the very end. This means I need to keep growing and so do you.
What is your dream? What is it that you are working for or growing towards? Is there any aspect of your life you need to get better at so you can be the person you want to be? Growth doesn’t just happen. Either you have a plan for your growth or someone else will.
I heard a challenge on a podcast today that I’m taking up and I’m throwing out to you. The challenge is to pick one area that is a skill and one area that is a choice (like an attitude) you would like to grow in and work on it intentionally every day till the end of the year. Make the choice public because that increases your chances of actually following through. Have people that you regularly check in with to tell them about your progress.
The skill area I’m choosing to grow in is business development and the area of choice I’m growing in is gratitude. Every Thursday till the end of the year will be a personal growth check in day. Chime in, join the challenge and take on the responsibility of your own development plan.
“You are not the work you do; you are the person you are.” Toni Morrison
