Need to Slow Down, Speed Up, or Change Direction While Pursuing Your Dream?



What was your experience when you learned to drive? Was it similar to when my daughters came of age? At that time, the only option was to pay for lessons at a driving school.

But back “in the day,” growing up in a small rural Wisconsin town, drivers education was part of the high school curriculum. That’s right. It was offered as a free class and taught by our science teacher.

Most of my classmates lived on farms where they’d learned to handle a steering wheel, gas pedal, clutch, and breaks by driving trucks and other motorized vehicles in non-populated areas. I grew up in town, and I’d never sat behind the wheel of a car prior to taking that class. Knowing that, my instructor had me first drive at a snail’s pace around and around the school driveway in full view of other classmates and teachers who were still on site after regular school hours.  Yeah … it was a bit embarrassing.

One I got my permit, my dad took me out on country roads to practice. I’ll never forget his calm demeanor while he advised me to put a little more pressure on the gas pedal while driving uphill to keep momentum, and less weight on the pedal while traveling downhill to maintain my speed.

People who live in the Midwest experience harsh winters with challenging road conditions. But when I moved to Seattle, I discovered the primary danger during winter months wasn’t cruising along on snowy roads. It was driving on hills—some winding and very steep—covered with black ice. If you don’t keep just the right amount of force on the gas pedal you’ll not only stop climbing, you’ll either end up in a ditch or slide backwards all the way to the bottom of the hill.

Isn’t it the same way with pursuing our dreams?

If we don’t have much experience with what we want to pursue, we may need to start out slow—even excruciatingly slow, despite our eagerness to just get on with it!

When things get a little scary and we feel like we’ve not only lost momentum, we’ve lost everything gained by our efforts, we may need to reassess the situation and possibly find another route instead of insisting on going in the same direction that has already failed. You’re probably familiar with Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity—doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.” 

We may also run into what seem like insurmountable challenges, but if we just keep going and don’t give up—if we keep our foot on the gas pedal—we’ll reach our destination.



What about the journey you’re taking to reach your dreams? Are there areas in your life right now where you may need to slow down, speed up, or change direction?


Dawn



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