“Do you know… where you’re going to? Do you like the things that life is showing you?”

This is a line from the theme song to the iconic 1970’s movie Mahogany, starring Diana Ross. The song is a bit melancholy but, taken out of context, these are good questions to ask yourself.

In this series of blog posts for #AllInAugust, we have talked about taking that first step toward your dream and having a plan (and being flexible with it).  In response, I got this DM: “What if I need a plan, but I don’t know what I want? How can I head in a direction if I don’t know if that direction is right for me?” These are also good questions to ask yourself.  But in the interest of expediency I will offer advice instead of coaching.

You need to figure out what you want out of life. You must be honest with what makes you happy and what you truly are passionate about.  Understand if it’s a pipe dream or a possibility.  Example – me making the Olympic team is a pipe dream. They don’t take middle aged non-athletes with bad knees.  But me having my own talk show is a possibility that I can try to make real. Nothing is standing in my way – unless I let it.

Have you ever considered that the reason so many people have a mid-life crisis is that it took them until their mid-forties to figure out they weren’t doing what they loved? And why are they not doing what they love? Because they let something stand in their way.  They stopped dancing, or gave up the guitar, or stopped drawing, or didn’t think they were good enough to apply to flight school. The negative voice in your head can sometimes be your biggest barrier.  And it can sometimes be your ONLY barrier.

Try this as a first step towards figuring out what you want:

1. Think of all the times that you felt truly alive, jazzed, amped up, hyped – however you identify that feeling of excitement in your spirit – and write them down.  Try to think of at least 5 different times or events.
2. Put each one on a different piece of paper.
3. Now on each page, write down the specific things about that event that made you come alive.  Was it what you were doing? Was it who you were with? Was it the location, the atmosphere, or vibe? Write it down.
4. Look for similarities on each page.  If something is repeated time and again – there’s your passion.  That’s where you should be going to. …Did you know?