What Direction Are You Going?

"I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving."
- Oliver Wendell Holmes

With the holiday season in full bloom and the end of the year rapidly approaching, I've been noticing an interesting blend of attitude and character. From family members not being able to afford Christmas gifts and friends finding themselves stuck in the same situation year after year, to jolly merriment of record charity efforts and end of year earnings for some businesses; there's certainly no shortage of variety in our daily interactions. There seems to be added pressure during this season, not only from the added "deadlines" of gift shopping and the end of the year, but also from our own natural analysis of how this past year faired and how next year might look. Direction is the key to any outlook, good or bad, rather than focussing on where we're at today, more importantly what direction are you going?

Determining what direction you're going may be a little easier in your professional life by way of pay raises and promotions, number of new clients this year over last year, general morale in the workplace, etc. Those aren't necessarily true indicators of your own personal direction as sometimes the company's direction may make any or all of those things a little skewed for better or worse. Other things to consider, not as affected by the company or economy, might be personal improvements in education or business relationships. With that in mind, what direction have you been moving in your professional life? The goal of most would be to continue moving forward. If you're answer is not one direction over another, well that may be an indicator as well.

Our personal lives are little more difficult to measure since we don't all keep track of numbers and statistics from year to year. Only big events like getting married, buying a house, having children or experiencing tragedy may stand out to us year over year. Many New Year's resolutions are short-lived and are forgotten, or never even started, so it may be hard to measure. LINKI've mentioned in the past that I'm not a big fan of New Year's resolutions, but not because they can't be beneficial, but more because they're often not used properly. Some use these resolutions to put off something they can start today, and others use resolutions as a short term guide to make progress in one particular area. How about just taking a snapshot of your entire life once a month, once a quarter, even once a year and comparing today to your last snapshot? Are you more in debt or less in debt? Do you have more savings, less savings, or the same as before? Do you have stronger relationships, or deteriorating relationships? How about your professional career?

It's more important to have an understanding of the direction you're moving in life, rather than where you're at today. Each day may change from one to the next, but your overall direction will indicate where you're going.