Where Do I Go Now? Finding your Direction of Travel
‘Well, the Lord looked down from his window in the sky,
Said, “I created man, but I don’t remember why,
Nothin’ but fightin’ since creation day,
I’ll send a little water and wash ‘em all away”’
These words come from a folk-gospel song written by Robert Schmertz in 1951. Leaving aside the biblical imagery, imagine for a moment that there really is a window in the sky, and that you could look down through it, down on earth. You focus on one individual making their way through life. Do they appear to be travelling somewhere meaningful, with purpose and intent? Or are they meandering from one opportunity to another, following whatever path happens to open up? Perhaps they are moving, but in circles, revisiting the same landscapes, the same frustrations, the same hopes, over and over again.
Imagine that the individual you are observing is you.
Many people experience periods of feeling lost, directionless or unmotivated. Sometimes this shows up in life generally; often it appears in work, career or profession. We drift into a role because an opportunity presents itself. We choose a course of study at eighteen without really knowing who we are. We pursue promotions because they seem like the next logical step.
Years pass. Then something changes. What was once stimulating becomes repetitive. What once felt meaningful loses its appeal. The role that suited the person you were no longer fits with how you now see yourself. Pulling yourself out of such a rut can be onerous. The effort required to stop, reflect and choose a new course often seems greater than simply continuing. And so the drift goes on.
One way out is to create for yourself a Direction of Travel. A Direction of Travel is more than a vision. It is a practical and inspiring construct that seeks to answer a complex question: What is meaningful and purposeful to me know and in the years to come? It becomes a guide for decision-making, a source of motivation and a call to action.
A strong Direction of Travel might include:
- What gives your life meaning and purpose
- What fulfilment feels like
- How you want to be in the world
- What success looks like to you
- What you are moving away from
- What you are moving towards
- The contribution you want to make
- A picture of the future that excites and inspires you.
Alongside this, it helps to include a timeframe and some milestones along the way.
I think of it as a rope made from many strands braided together.
Purpose is one strand. Meaning is another.
Contribution, fulfilment, success, growth, learning and identity are all strands.
The more strands woven together, the stronger the rope becomes.
A clear Direction of Travel can help in powerful ways:
- It keeps you focused from day to day and week to week.
- It increases motivation and energy.
- It helps move you towards success, fulfilment and contribution.
- It improves decision-making, particularly around significant choices such as career changes, new roles, projects or where to live.
For any decision a useful question to ask is: will this move me closer to my Direction of Travel, or further away from it?
In developing your own Direction of Travel, you might reflect on some of these questions:
- Looking back over the last five years, what has brought you the greatest satisfaction or joy?
- What has consistently drained your energy or enthusiasm?
- What feels meaningful?
- What would fulfilment look like?
- What sense of purpose, however vague, keeps calling to you?
- What would fulfilment look like?
- Imagine a perfect but typical day five years from now. What are you doing? Who are you with? How are you being?
- What contribution could you make that would genuinely inspire you?
- What are the outward signs of success for you?
- What milestones might tell you that you are heading in the right direction?
- What might you be becoming?
It is important to remember that a Direction of Travel is a construct. Your construct. It is not a prediction, nor a commitment carved in stone. Noe of that would be helpful. As you grow, your Direction of Travel may evolve. It may change shape entirely. That is healthy. The purpose is not to constrain you, but to guide you.
Once you have created it, test it. Experiment. Take small steps towards it and notice what happens. Does it energise you? Does it feel right, congruent with who you are or are becoming?
Possible next steps:
- Reflect on the questions above and write down your answers.
- Share your thoughts with someone you trust.
- Choose one element of your Direction of Travel and identify a small next step.
- Create a visual reminder—a mind map, drawing or image—that keeps it alive in your thinking.
“Where do I go now?” Perhaps the question is: “Who am I becoming, and what direction does that person want to take?”