“We are in a frantic race to nowhere hoping we attain a goal we don’t know why we are pursuing with the hope it makes us happy.”
Our lives are our core businesses. Like any business, you must take stock in order to know what quantities of which product you still have in your stores, their expiry dates, the ones that need to reordered from your suppliers and slow moving stock that you should write-off if they are not giving good conversions. That’s the overall scope of what stock take does. It gives you a snapshot of your current situation in respect to past occurrences. Once you understand where you are, then you can plan ahead and take action with the hope of realizing favourable outcomes.
Over time I have come to notice frustration that individuals face in their lives and I won’t lie I’m an exception to the rule. In part, I’d say I’m the rule but that doesn’t matter. It just proves I’m human and with my humanity, I feel the feelings all humans experience at any one point in life. These kinds of frustration come about in our lives when we set forth to achieve something in life but on every attempt, we end up getting an unfavourable result. One might start suspecting their villagers are sleeping outside for them but I doubt such a thing can even happen.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have been brooding over this subject including talking about it with my mom when I paid her a visit. (That’s a reference there, some of the insights in this piece are from her). Often times we know what we wish for but can’t say why we do wish for it or even why it’s so important for us to achieve it even though we are working hard for it. This lack of a basis for why makes the goal appear like an illusion because even when attained it might not seem like it being it was rather amorphous from the start. This is in the sense that it didn’t have any specific form and so it doesn’t fit in the overall scheme of things in your life. It might come in as an imperfectly attached appendage. Ever seen a house with additional rooms added after the initial construction was finished? It’s shapeless.
I am of the idea that if we take time to reflect on why we want something in our life and establish this then we stand a better chance to achieve it. This is in the sense that we understand and comprehend how the end result should look like such that along the way we build on it in parts towards that ultimate goal. As it gains form, you can visualize it and optimize it. That’s the power of taking stock once in awhile.
How do you go about taking stock then? For every sphere of your life, plot it on a plain paper and map your trajectory over time. You’ll realize that there are advances you’ve made over the past including the shortcomings. Once you have this in place, you can note that for each shortcoming, there was a driver for it or rather you didn’t have focusing compass on what you wanted to realize. That’s as important as it can get. Based on these findings, you set course on what steps you will take towards your goal. In some cases you can even decide to take a break in order to disrupt the negative cycle you’ve had yourself in. Once this is done, then ultimately it’ll be upon you to act. There’s no outcome of inaction, only consequences.
For more details, you can look into this report of a session we hosted early this year on Personal Development in the Face of Uncertainty and Change.
“When you feel stranded and frustrated, remember you can regain control. Take stock, reflect, strategize and act to achieve your hearts’ desires.”