Recalculating

By JoAnn Auger, MSBC Executive Coach/Trainer

Anyone that has been in a car equipped with GPS has heard this word – “Recalculating”.  Actually it can be quite annoying at times. But the other day as I was listening to a guest on a radio program talk about their GPS, it got me to thinking about how the word “recalculating” could apply to how we view our world.

We may get very annoyed hearing the repetitive sound of “recalculating,”  but have you ever noticed that the GPS never sounds annoyed with us? The system keeps the same tone and repeats the same message. It doesn’t matter how many times we miss a turn… it will continue to notify us with the same non-judging message. It never runs out of patience and yells at us. How often do we get frustrated with ourself and others when mistakes (wrong turns) are made? We have little patience for mistakes and for the people who make them.

Once the GPS lets you know that it is time to recalculate, it will offer solutions.  Those solutions will include instructions such as making a U-turn or choosing a new route for you. Again there is no judgment in your ability to navigate - just some words of advice from your GPS.  It will continue to offer potential solutions for every wrong turn. But there are times we don’t want the advice of our GPS because the potential solutions do not align with our own inner guiding system.  We will turn-off the GPS.  At times our inner guiding system is right, and sometimes it is not. Then we find ourselves going in circles. Sound familiar?  Often we are not open to advice of others – even if we are lost.

So, the next time you’re feeling a little uncertain about your direction or the direction of someone you are leading, here are some things to consider as you “recalculate”:

• Be patient and non-judging.  It’s ok to point out a mistake but do it in a positive way with the intent of helping someone get to their intended destination. Understand that their destination most likely will be somewhere they have never been before so it is possible they will make several wrong turns. Just like we appreciate our GPS for letting us know we missed our turn, people will will appreciate it if your intentions are to help get them where they need to go. Also, allow others permission to notify you if you are going the wrong direction. Do you need to help someone with finding their way? Are you willing to receive advice about your direction?
• Be open to go a different direction. Some of the greatest lessons to be learned will come from making a wrong turn. There are times that the GPS takes me a in a direction that seems to be “out of the way”. Even though my intuition tells me that there may be a better direction, I often choose to follow the GPS. Doing that has allowed me to make discoveries and learn new paths. Remember that old adage: “it’s not about the destination but the journey”.  Wrong turns or a different path can often lead to greater success if we are open to it. Are you open to exploring new paths?
• Trust and be trusted.  We have to trust our GPS to get us to our destination. A friend of mine that recently started using GPS was struggling with trusting it. During a short trip with this friend, I noticed that they had a map plus printed directions. Of course, I asked why they were unable to trust their GPS. Their answer was that “it was a new concept to them”, they had heard “horror stories of getting lost”, and that they needed “to feel some control”. In other words the GPS had to pass their ”trust test”.  Do you have a ”trust test” for people?  How easily do you extend trust?  Can people trust you?  We will have a tougher time getting to our destination if we can’t trust and be trusted. What do you need to do trust and be trusted?