Navigating life’s journey
It is a screen world after all. Screens today are so pervasive such that teenagers today are given a new name. They are now called: “Screenagers.”
An average teen now navigates through at least four screens. They have their smart phones, laptop, tablet, they watch TV and some of them are even wearing smart watches. They are all screens aren’t they? I no longer laugh nor wonder when I speak in schools in front of massive crowds of young students and even those who are seated in front instinctively look at my monitor screen instead of the live human in front of them.
That’s how technology has affected us as it drives the pace of change and it would be an understatement for me to say that the speed is getting faster and faster. Add to this is the additional pressure of “missing out” and many young people want to try to live through multiple experiences as much as possible for fear of being “left out.”
Business people worry about disruption; traffic conditions continue to worsen; demand for us to produce more and churn out stuff in a shorter time frame adds all these pressure that increase our anxiety and stress level.
A lot of people are now getting confused on finding out how to navigate the journey of their lives. Young people now have their “quarter-life crisis,” older people have their “mid-life crisis” while others simply have crises.
Technology cannot help us navigate life. Consider this analogy, we have our devices and we depend on it but the problem with GPS is that the technology offers us information as to where we are and offer simple advices on how we can get to where you want to go. But the technology does not do any heavy lifting. It still leaves the individual to do it.
The journey through life does not operate like a GPS. You and I need to develop the ability and comprehension of map reading. Understanding where we are, going through each place on our own, through the process of discovery. There is no shortcut to this process.
This journey is literally dealing with pains, hurdles and obstacles but we go through it and overstep to become wiser. We process each experience and learn from the mistakes to move forward. Perhaps inch by inch, perhaps by leaps and bounds but as we gather information and experience, process them. These data become wisdom that can be applied to different time and context of events that happen to us in our lives.
Technology cannot solve all of our problems. They merely provide vast opportunities to explore more territories but the potential for doing so still depends on the human element that does the heavy lifting. The old fashion way of map reading, asking directions, getting mentorship, reading books, attending seminars, enjoying the scenery along the way all these are things and activities that gives meaning.
Most people I know use the GPS that provides that sweet female British accented voice giving you directions as to “turn left in 200 meters ahead” or to “stay at the right” and you can still do texting or listen to the ambient music and drive the vehicle at the same time, which is a very dangerous thing to do. Is not the same when you use road maps. When you go through an old-fashioned road map you need to stop your movements, focus on the information and then follow each direction or landmarks along the way.
Many people especially the young ones swing with ideas that they generate from podcasts, self-help books and from instant success seminars and that is what they want. They want a GPS that can instantaneously bring them to their success objectives and they rely on easy and accessible technology to do this for them.
They do not want to navigate through life. They jump from one company to another as long as they get a higher pay. They try their luck in “investment schemes” that promises quick profits. This aversion for progress and preference for instant success has led many good people to make dumb decisions that have caused havoc and destruction to their lives.
We need to learn the art of life-map reading. And one more thing, to go through the process of traveling the road that may be full of humps, lumps and bumps but in the process begin to pick up skills, experience and toughness that enable us to travel farther and achieve things better. And one more thing, you also need to take decisive actions. Actions that are driven.
The word “Driven” means to drive and to get the vehicle moving. You may have the GPS and the maps but without movement and motion borne out of a determination to make life happen, you will never get to where you want to be.
Study hard. Be a lifelong learner. Work hard. Rise up early and start grinding and hustling. That is how we navigate and travel. Though the journey may not be pleasant all the time, learn to enjoy the scenery and learn from it.
(Francis Kong with his highly acclaimed Level Up Leadership learning event will be back with its next run on June 5-6, 2018. Early registrations and reservations can be made by contacting April at +63928-559-1798 or register online at www.levelupleadership.ph)