Don't Wait For Your Ship To Come InByBrendan TobinI was talking with someone the other day who told me that things weren't going her way. She was waiting for her ship to come in, because then things would turn out like she wanted.
Oh, okay. I see.
That's like telling the fireplace that if it gives you some heat, you'll give it some wood. Not likely to happen!
Ships don't "come in." In order for a ship to get from one place to another, it requires more than just luck with the tides. It requires planning, charting, fuel, course correction and help. It is a planned and calculated process.
It's the same thing for your life. You can't drift along and hope to happen upon the perfect harbor. The tides of life will take control of you and run you ashore on the first beach they can find. That's how we end up looking back 20 years and wondering how we arrived someplace other than where we planned to be when we set out.
If you fail to plan, plan to fail.
You are the captain of the "USS You," an extremely high-tech piece of equipment that is capable of going all sorts of places and doing all kinds of amazing things. The outcome of the ship's potential is based on a crew of five, which consists of you, your planning, your drive, your wits and your common sense. How experienced your crew is depends on the training you give them. If you study the things you need to accomplish, looking for answers, you're going to be a lot better off. If you just leave the dock and spend your time watching TV, you could end up like that ferryboat captain who ran his ship aground because he was watching a soccer match instead of studying his sailing data. Wonderful.
If you still think you can just sit there and wait for your ship to come in, guess again. Even the biggest ship needs some help to end up in the right port. That's why we have tugboats, those powerful little vessels that go out and help guide the ship to the dock. Those tugboats are people who can give us the assistance or information we need to achieve our goals. They are out there, but you need to tell enough people what you want to accomplish in order to find the right folks to help.
Some people think their ship has been taken over by pirates, either family members or employers, who now have ultimate control of where the ship ends up. Not quite. You are in charge of your destiny, no matter what anyone tells you, and you have to do the work to get what you want and where you want. It's completely up to you. Figure out where you want to go, do some homework to create your chart—and get moving.
Don't wait for things to happen to you. Make them happen for you. You can do it! I believe in you! Have a great week!
Reprinted with permission from: Brendan Tobin
Copyright © 2000 Brendan Tobin
Brendan Tobin is the President of The Tobin Group, based in Tinton Falls, New Jersey USA. The Tobin Group is a strategy and planning firm that helps individuals and organizations to improve themselves and their processes through preparation and implementation. The basis of his business is overcoming predicaments and finding solutions instead of focusing on the problems.
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