Where you are today is simply the harbor from which your ship is about to set sail – Bob Goff
Always On
Whether formally or informally, we are constantly collecting data and performing assessments. As a parent, I continually observe our children to determine their growth, responses to different words and actions, and how they interact with each other and children outside our home. I also observe how they adjust to new environments. All this “data collection” informs my parenting methods because one size does not fit all. In life, we collect data in various ways. Whether by reflection or writing in a journal, we continuously collect data and make assessments.
Progress, performance, and productivity are at the core of any assessment. We achieve the best growth when we assess how we are doing in our lives. The busyness of life rarely gives us moments of reflection, but a few minutes, taken regularly to perform a life assessment, has significant value.
Testing
Educators administer regular tests to collect data to gauge student learning and teaching effectiveness. Sometimes, a teacher will give a pop quiz to assess student progress and adjust teaching methods to improve the student learning experience before a final exam. Similarly, we must willingly perform continuous assessments of where we are and use the findings to improve and grow. The great coach John Wooden once said, “Without proper self-evaluation, failure is inevitable.” With it, there is tremendous value.
Without proper self-evaluation, failure is inevitable
Coach John Wooden
Situational Awareness
Assessments or self evaluations give you the benefit of situational awareness that ultimately leads to adjustments and improvements. On the rare occasions I go to the mall, I don’t wander around looking for a store. I head to the mall directory, showing all the stores and their location. The key to the map is not that it shows you the location of other stores; it shows you where you are. Recognizing where I am helps me chart the course to where I want to go. Similarly, we cannot set sail to a desired location without knowing where we are or knowing our bearings.
Brutal Honesty
Some habits, behaviors and even past experiences won’t serve us well where we are headed. Identifying them and uprooting them are critical to moving forward. Brutal honesty is necessary for situational awareness. It takes courage to determine your current location. Are you coasting in your life, living below expectations, settling for less than what you are capable of? Has fear, regret, or guilt tethered you to a life that doesn’t measure up to your purpose? Have you chosen toxic over transformative relationships? Stagnancy can often be attributed to a constantly unexamined life. It doesn’t have to be the norm once we choose to get honest with where we are and reject a life beneath the level of our gifts, abilities, and purpose. In his riveting book, Dream Big, best-selling author Bob Goff asks, “Can we just look each other in the eye…and say, No more doing what merely occupies, entertains, and numbs us?”
Stagnancy can often be attributed to a constantly unexamined life.
Final thought: Where do you want to go in life? Do you want a life that will outlive you? Is your current location not where you thought you’d be? Once you identify where you are, don’t camp there; start the climb to the place you want to be by making the adjustments and improvements that will bring growth and take you to your dreams and goals.
Keep on keeping on!
Notes
Goff, B : Dream Big, page 18
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