The power of the crossroads of possibility

Each and every moment, you are at a crossroads with an infinite number of paths. Make one choice, and you head one direction. Make a different choice, and you zip off in another direction. When you look at it that way, the potential malleability of life is mind-boggling.

And yet most of us fool ourselves into an artificially narrow view of possibility. We make assumptions about the way things are and - poof! - a path of possibility disappears. We persist with limiting beliefs that have no basis in our current reality. Poof! There goes another path.

What would happen if you really and truly looked at each moment, not as simply a continuation of an inevitable single-track path, but as a crossroads jam packed with potential directions?

What if you trained yourself to stop and ask, "What are the possibilities here? Where am I going? Where do I want to go? What choices or steps can I find right here and now that would lead me - even incrementally - towards that goal?

One way to start harnessing the power of the crossroads of possibility is to watch for times when you feel limited and make a game of finding options. Or watch for limiting ways you spend your time (mindless TV, or example, or listening to people complain) and explore other ways that could lead you in a more positive direction.

Try this: For the next week, practice noticing crossroads moments. Find moments when you can say, "Is this leading me in a direction I want? What other options are there?" It could be something as simple as being tempted to turn on the TV and tune out, but instead grabbing a book that is helping you explore a new direction. 

The power of the crossroads of possibility isn't in making one monumental choice to take a new direction (though that certainly does happen). The real power, and what makes it so relevant to everyone regardless of their current life circumstances, is in the cumulative potential for change as the choices you make at each of those crossroads add up. 

A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step, the saying goes. And each single step starts from a new crossroads of possibility.

Where is your journey taking you?

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Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

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by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Comments

[Terrence Seamon]

Curt,
Thanks for this entry on the possibilities in crossroads. You might enjoy this:
http://learningvoyager.blogspot.com/2009/11/finding-your-way.html
Terry