Before the great explorers of old set out on their journeys, they would always draw a map of the territory they were about to enter: where was the food and water? Where were the deserts and the swamps, the helpful people and the dangerous ones? Even a sketch map based on rumours was better than no map at all.
These times of change that we are living through can be a bit like this. Nobody can predict what will happen tomorrow, let alone next week or a month from now. We have all become explorers. And like those great explorers of old, we will all succeed better if we have a sketch map to guide us.
In our case, the map we need is not a map of our outer physical world but rather a map of our inner emotional world: a reminder of the things that matter most to us, which we can use to keep us aligned, grounded, and inspired, no matter what happens.
The final chapter of Inner Leadership shows you how to draw this map uniquely for yourself, by pulling together everything you have learned 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
- The key facts and quotes that inspire you to move forward each day
- The people who can help you to 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 out these landmarks now, you give yourself something to refer to when you get lost : a way to quickly reorient yourself and confidently move forward in the right direction.
The Churning, Inner Leadership’s playbook or workbook provides a template that you can use to record your answers: somewhere to refer to when you need to consult your map.
And just like those great explorers of old, you can always update your map as you travel forward and discover more.
Creating your own customised inspiration map will help you to navigate this time of change better. It is another way of becoming 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 are using that to navigate these times of change? 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