In which direction will you decide to go during a storm in the life? Will you feel despair and panic or pray and wait for it to pass over and then decide? Will you turn to someone to seek for the direction? Or will you straightaway start adjusting your sails without knowing which direction to move in by relying on your efforts, courage and never give up attitude? I would like to remind you that “efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and proper direction.”
Therefore, it is the direction first and not the magnitude of other factors or attributes which should be taken into consideration when you are passing through a storm that throws uncertainty all around and brings your life into a state of disarray – Isn’t it? As Jim Rohn rightly remarked that “you cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.”
Related: 10 useful ways to choose the right direction in life
Here is an interesting story that explains the need for right direction in our lives to sail through the rough patches.
The captain of the boat lost his way in the middle of a storm. While trying to control the ship and move to avoid sinking, he started feeling anguish and frustration.
The waves became bigger; the noise of the water hitting the boat, like a feather carried by the wind, almost led him to despair.
But he did not give up and tried harder every time the waves hit the boat. In his desperate attempts to stay strong and keep the boat steady, he was unable to hear one of his crew officers yelling at him.
“Captain, Captain!” kept yelling the officer, while holding on to one of the deck’s bars to avoid falling off the boat.
“Captain, Captain!” insisted the officer.
This time, while trying to approach him, a huge wave almost made the boat tip over and the officer fell and rolled on the deck till he luckily found another rail to hold on to.
After several attempts, the officer finally was able to reach his fighting, drenched, and tired captain who had started to yell out his frustrations and thoughts to the raging waves.
“If I am a good hardworking man, why does this happen to me?!.. and I can’t get out of this one?! I have been sailing the open ocean for years to fish the best catch and get support for my family!! Why, why, why?”
At that moment his crew officer was able to grab the captain’s shoulder and make him turn so that the captain could hear him.
“Captain, Captain! Yelled again the officer.
The captain looked at him furiously for distracting him from his difficult task.
“What do you need officer?! Don’t you see I am trying to control the ship and find our way back?!” complained the captain.
His officer kept holding onto the captain and pointed in the opposite direction, towards the stern.
“Captain!” he replied. “The lighthouse is right over there, on the other side. We are going in the wrong direction!!!” That’s when captain realized that he was not retreating but advancing in another direction.
Thus, know that it is the direction first that is more important than courage, efforts and speed in every phase of life. Ensure that you reflect often to know whether you are in the right direction or not? Here are few questions that help you on your retrospective journey.
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- Am I heading in right direction?
- Am I going to achieve the goal that I had set myself by taking this direction?
- Am I equipped with right resources to sail through the rough patches?
- Will I be able to change the direction if required? Etc
As the “right direction yields the right result.”, we must take the right direction to lead a remarkable life.
