Before the great explorers of old set out on their journeys they would always draw a map of the territories they were about to enter: where was the food and drinking water? Where were the deserts and the swamps, the helpful people and the dangerous ones? Even a sketch map was better than no map at all.
These times of change that we are living through are like this. Nobody can predict what is going to happen tomorrow, let alone a week or a month from now. So we have all become explorers. And like those great explorers of old, we will succeed much better if we have a sketch map to guide us.
In our case, the map we need is not a map of the outer physical world but a map of our inner emotional world: a reminder of the things that matter most to us, which we can use to keep us grounded, aligned, and inspired, no matter what is happening around us.
The final chapter of Inner Leadership shows us how to draw this map uniquely for ourselves. It does this by pulling together the key elements of everything we have explored in the book:
- What you are working to create: your inspiring vision
- Why this matters to you — your purpose
- How you are going to make this journey — your values
- How this will contribute to you living a worthwhile life — and the actions you are taking to achieve that
- The key facts and quotes that inspire you to move forward each day
- The people who can help you achieve your vision, and what they need to feel motivated and inspired
- How you will keep yourself centred, grounded, and connected with your priorities as you move forward
By mapping these key landmarks now, you give yourself something to refer to when you get lost — a tool to help you find yourself again, then quickly move forward in the right direction.
The workbook provides a simple template that you can use to record your answers: a single place to refer to when you need to consult your map.
And of course, like those great explorers of old, you can always update and add to your map as you move forward.
Creating your own customised inspiration map will help you to navigate your way through this time of change better. It is another way to become antifragile: able to use change to become stronger and more valuable.
Do you have a clear map of what motivates and inspires you and how you can best apply this in your life? Would it be useful to create one?
Adapted from Inner Leadership: a framework and a set of tools for building inspiration in times of change.
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(And remember: you can’t learn to swim just by reading about swimming, you also need to do the practice.)
Photo By Public Record Office of Northern Ireland via StockPholio.net