Do you use a fitness tracker? If so, you can probably quickly discover how many steps and how many miles you walk in a day. You might be able to tell how high you climb, as well. Unfortunately, what a fitness tracker won’t tell you is if you are on the right course. (You’ll at least need GPS functionality for that!) But regardless of how many steps you take or how high you climb, if you aren’t on the right life path and moving in the right career direction, you’ll end up wasting a great deal of energy and a great deal of time only to end up frustrated and disillusioned.
So, what path are you on? After a long career of success in sales leadership, are you walking in circles or going nowhere on a career treadmill? If so, there’s a better alternative:
A Single Step
It was Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu who wrote that, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Simple and true. But what if you embarked upon that journey of a thousand miles only to discover you had been going in the wrong direction the whole time? Or maybe you made a wrong turn along the way and veered off course. Or maybe you were like a hamster on a wheel, endlessly moving but never advancing.
You get the point, right? It’s important to keep moving. But more important to keep moving toward something. Toward a goal, toward a worthy destination, toward a dream. Can you honestly say, right now, today, that your steps are taking you in the right direction?
Following a Well-lit Path
Every experience you’ve had and every lesson you’ve learned adds wattage to your wisdom. And over time – living and learning from the challenges and successes in your personal and professional lives – your wisdom becomes a beacon. It can shine the light that illuminates the path, the right path, if you dare to focus and follow it.
Sure, looking back is tempting. So is staying where you are. But the light shines brighter on the path ahead, and the brightest light of all is amplified by your dreams and passions. It draws you toward your calling, your purpose, your destiny. They all lie ahead of you, not behind and not where you are today.
Climbing a Conquerable Mountain
Stepping toward your destiny isn’t easy. It takes a leap of faith. It demands that you step outside your comfort zone and dare to take a chance – on yourself. As Steve Harvey says, you’ll have to “jump.” Admittedly, sometimes it’s difficult to jump up to a higher place. When I climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro with my wife, the path was not paved. We had to maneuver along “seemingly endless winding switchback trails, scaling massive boulders and trudging through quicksand-like scree where we measured progress in inches.” But we kept going, because we had a well-lit vision of what lay ahead, above the clouds, the summit of our dreams. And because we were determined, the climb became possible. More than that, our destination became our destiny!
We had worked hard in preparation for that Kilimanjaro climb. We had guides helping us scale the mountain. And we had faith, in ourselves and each other and those around us. And, of course, in a higher power.
Ultimately, however, it came down to a single step. The next step. The next step in the right direction on the right path, moving higher and higher. But still a single step.
The Bottom Line About Your Journey to the Top
Your past – every challenge, every accomplishment, every morsel of hard-earned wisdom – has prepared you to take the right next step in a new direction toward a fulfilling future. It takes a leap of faith. It takes a jump up to a higher level. But I have a good feeling you’re ready for your next enlightened journey and your next meaningful climb to where you can help others who need your wisdom, your passion, and your renewed sense of purpose. You are needed as a Sales Leadership Consultant. The next step is yours: To learn more about the Sales Xceleration consulting opportunity, simply click here or contact us today at 844.874.7253.
