Your Starting Place

Your Starting Place (Audio)

Knowing where you are is always important. I seldom get lost but I don’t always know where I am… Your present location, status and knowing what’s available to you as an option – all are important things.

Back in 1968 or so, my science teacher, Mr. Doolittle, taught us that light never stops until it hits something that stops it. He challenged us to shine a flashlight into the stars at night and imagine the beam going forever until it hit something that caused it to stop. This has always puzzled me about the power of a light beam. One definition simply says it’s energy radiating from a source, and though filtered it has the power to keep going till it can no longer move due to a barrier.

This got me to thinking about our lives. Our species. Our planet. Our direction. Where are we going? Where are we at right now?

So, right now, where are you? What’s your status? What options are available? Where do you want to go?

A few years ago my bride and I drove away from our domicile, headed to several weeks of vacation. We were driving across the state into nearby Idaho. As we left the house she asked, “Which way do we go?” I vaguely pointed east and said, “That way!” Which road? What town do we head for? How long will it take? Where’s the map? “I need some direction!”

We were going nearly 600 miles away, on roads we had never traveled on, and into areas without good cell coverage. I was willing to meander over that a’way and enjoy the trip of discovery, you know, sort of like those early pioneers who went not knowing what the morrow would be like! She needed concrete decisions, tools to show the way, a prescribed path to follow, measurements to show status, times, knowledge of road conditions and a comfort knowing we could get there safely and on time.

My early morning thought about some changes I am making in my personal life got me to thinking how we are often headed into the future without a plan. We have no clear idea where we are, nor where we are going, and have not prepared for the journey, nor for the destination.

If you are headed into retirement, have you a plan in place to make sure when you get there then all is prepared for the event? If you are traveling to a far-off destination, the questions are still valid! If you are starting a new career, what have you done to get ready for that first day?

Perhaps one of the most overlooked tools in our toolbox of life is the ability to measure life accurately.

Your toolbox easily contains all the implements needed, but we seldom see the importance of keeping track. Why? Perhaps our goal is vague, or we cannot see the value of the measuring system.

There was a time I kept up with every mile I drove, the gas and oil purchases for my vehicle, and knew how much it cost to go certain places. Why? I saw my grandparents do this and thought it a nifty idea. In fact, I still have one of grandmother’s ledger books where she kept up with this back during my birth decade…the 50’s! Somewhere along the way I quit doing it. I don’t know why. I’ve driven nearly 2 million miles… Imagine the history book I could have recorded along the way!

I do know that if I want something to proceed in a manner that tells me that I’m successfully accomplishing it, then the best way to track the progress is to measure it along the way.

Think about where you are going, how you want to get there, the steps you are taking to ensure the path is followed…now, are you measuring yourself every day to ensure you are on target? That’s the measurement I’m talking about.