Overthinking – have you ever done it? Forget it, you do it all the time – thinking 10 steps ahead before even making it through the first step. Yes, it’s fantastic to have a plan to make it to the end zone, but remember this: it’s about the first down, not the touchdown.
We’re young, fresh out of the gate, with bright eyes and the perfect picture of what our lives will look like; strolling through the Air Canada Centre on our way to the corner office, waving at Brendan Shanahan, deep in a playoff run with the Leafs…
Or maybe it’s this – you get your first job and right away you start thinking about when your promotion will come. It will happen fast, so you have to get ready for it. What about the title change – in a year you’ll become the manager, right? Your mind is living in an accelerated fantasy and your foot is full throttle on the gas, but it doesn’t quite work like that.
We all need to slow down for a second.
Making it to the end zone happens one step at a time, and it’s important to remind yourself that. When you get caught up thinking too far in the future, all of a sudden you start putting too many limits on your now decisions.
Having both a short-term and a long-term plan are important for your personal development, but re-evaluating that plan is also very important. When we look at different jobs or opportunities, it’s important not to limit yourself while thinking too far ahead to the touchdown. Think about the first down. The reality is our careers won’t always move in a ladder, often times it will look more like a jungle gym.
All the pieces will eventually come together. I challenge you to recognize the times when you are focused too far ahead and are limiting yourself by doing so. Starting as soon as deciding whether or not to apply for a job. PSA – applying for a job doesn’t mean you’ve got the job and neither does getting an interview.
Making that touchdown takes time. The problem is, we see the people who landed the touchdown on the first down, or maybe off an interception, and we think that’s going to be me. Yes, you might be the one that makes it to the end zone on the first play but you also might not be. And ultimately, it’s most important to make a game plan off the understanding that you’ll need to make it one down at a time – moving slowly but surely towards that end zone.
Sara
