Sunday Morning
Last night I Googled the saying “Wherever you go there you are.” I have always gotten a chuckle out of that expression — I guess because of its pithiness. There are similar expressions - “you are exactly where you need to be” and “you are where you are because of your past actions and decisions” for example.
As I scrolled through the search results, I came across the following article. I’m a sucker for checklists so I read the article. I thought it had some good checkpoints. The list is probably meant for a twenty-something but what the heck.
I got a good laugh from the photo (above) that accompanied the article. It reminded me of a saying I use with my kids - “dive into the deep end.” 😁
Here’s the article: It is normal for each of us to question where we are in relation to the accomplishment of our goals and plans for our life. Oftentimes, we can lose sight of the reasons why we are even moving in the direction of each. In these moments, it is important that we have a way of reassuring ourselves that we are exactly where we are supposed to be, even when it might not feel like the most favorable chapter of our lives. Though each of our stories is unique, you will likely find the affirmation you are seeking somewhere below that will strengthen the faith that you are exactly where you are supposed to be.
1. You’re Letting Yourself Feel. ✔️
You no longer feel numb to the emotions you might have turned your back to before. You’re okay with shedding a tear when the moment feels right or feeding into the joy that a moment of nostalgia can bring. You are laughing, crying, and excited to try new things all when the moment calls for it. You have regained a healthy range of feeling capacity. 2. You feel uncomfortable often. ✔️❓
You’re out of your comfort zone a lot of the time. Though it may be difficult, it means you are forcing yourself to grow and break out of your existing comfort zone in order to try new things. Let’s face it — people rarely find success in their own backyards. They find it through the willingness to be uneasy, scared, and unsure — which is exactly what you are doing. You are allowing yourself to be uncomfortable. Your fear no longer motivates you, but rather your vision for the future.
3. Things feel as if they are finally falling into place. ❓
Coincidences are the universe’s way of communicating with you so the best way to know whether or not you are on the right path is by how well the world is responding to your efforts. Things are beginning to work out, even though you might have been scared or anxious that they wouldn’t. As the proverb would have it: “Move and the way will open.” 4. The way you respond to the success of other people has changed. ✔️
When you see other people’s successes, you think, “That’s their path,” rather than, “Why don’t I have that, too?” The happier you are with your life, the less you want other people’s. The same can be said about your decisions: the happier you are with your decisions, the less you need other people to be.
5. You know you don’t have forever. ✔️
You enjoy your life because you know that it won’t last forever. In other words, you are a bit more mindful of your mortality. You maintain a healthy degree of detachment; You don’t get lost in the fear that you’re stuck in the place where you are or accept the notion that things will never change. You know your time is limited; therefore, you want to spend it wisely. You spend more time trying to enjoy the moment and less trying to avoid it.
6. You worry about what other people think far less than you used to. ✔️
Now that you are becoming more satisfied with yourself, you feel less preoccupied with making sure other people approve and validate you.
7. Rejection no longer scares you. ✔️❓
Yes, it’s uncomfortable and no, you don’t like it. In fact, you’ll do anything you possibly can to avoid it, but you now know how to deal with it and because of that, you refuse to allow it to paralyze you. You have done so many things in your life that have exposed you to the potential for rejection, that now has come to the time where you realize just how much it has helpedyou in the long run.
8. You see the point of the past and have learned to love your mistakes. ✔️❓
You must first acknowledge that you committed a few mess-ups in the past and accept responsibility for your part in whatever outcome may have occurred as a result. Admitting you have made mistakes in the past is the first degree of a person’s self-awareness. However, once you understand the reasons why and what motivated you to make those mistakes, you are ready to change your life for good.
9. There’s been a shift in your relationships. ✔️
The relationships you have in your life are a reflection of the relationship you have with yourself and the health of each is related just as much to your own. At this point in your life, you no longer entertain social hierarchies and friendship politics anymore. Your relationships are now solely based around who adds texture to your life, rather than who you think you should surround yourself with. Quality over quantity has never been so true when it comes to the relationships in your life. So at this point in your life, you are choosing to spend time with the people that make you happy and have cut ties with the ones who bring you down. 10. You find peace in being alone. ✔️❓
You are no longer chasing the next high, but oddly enough, what makes you feel the best is when your work is handled and your well-being is prioritized. You would rather spend your time and effort in building peaceful homeostasis rather than running a marathon trying to escape your anxiety. You want to be present for what’s happening in your life and no longer desire some variation of distraction until it passes. Even if you don’t necessarily prefer being alone, you’re not so scared of the silence that you’re willing to stick around the wrong people.
11. The unknown doesn’t scare you as much as it used to. ✔️
Now that you have a clearer idea of what you want the future to hold, the future no longer feels like this terrifying abyss of the unknown, even if you aren’t (yet) sure how you’ll get to your end goal. The more you are conscious of your values, the easier it becomes to decide where to implement each into your life. 12. You no longer feel the need to judge people and argue with them pointlessly. ✔️✔️
The more you genuinely like yourself and your life, the less you feel the need to pick apart the life of another person. By that same token, the more confident and assured you feel, the less you manically want to prove yourself to others or justify why you might be ‘smarter’ or ‘superior’ to others all the time.
13. You’ve taken responsibility for your life and introduced new intentions to your behaviors. ✔️❓
Your primary goal is to make sure you can take care of yourself and potentially your loved ones and those you care most about. You engage in self-care, honor the budget set, and take pride in doing your work to the best of your ability. You might not enjoy waking up at the crack of dawn to spend 9+hours a day working, but you do it because you know it is necessary to support your long-term goals and you have accepted that the accomplishment of these goals takes time and diligence. Though it might be hard work, you understand that it is what is required if you want to have control over the direction your life goes.
14. You know when to ask for help and when to figure it out yourself. ✔️
Every one of us needs help at one point or another in our lives and that goes for even the most ‘put-together’ people. Though you are a grown adult and independent in essentially all facets of your life, it is okay to let people know when you could use a helping hand, words of encouragement, or support in some variation. That being said, it is just as important that you are now self-aware enough to know when it’s time to deal with certain things on your own and to exercise the strength each chapter in your story has manifested within you up until now. 15. The way you see the world is evolving regularly. ✔️
Though you might have a similar perspective and the lens might not change much from one day to the next, you are making yourself open to the experiences and insight that can encourage a new outlook on the world. A person challenging your opinion no longer feels intimidating or like a waste of time, but rather an opportunity for growth. You have found a new hunger within you that craves more than just the status quo and confirmation bias. You are finding new ways of making sense of the world and are welcoming a curious mind.