A few weeks ago, while driving to pick up some materials for a brick oven I’m building out back (so awesome – I’ll share some photos once it’s all ready to rock), I took a wrong turn. I had been following directions from Google Maps and just missed the street.
And what did Google Maps do? It automatically reconfigured my plans and directed me to turn on the next street and get me back to my intended destination.
Simple thing, right?
But a few lessons hit me as I’ve thought about this…
First, Google Maps did NOT get on my case for missing the street. “Hello…I told you to turn left! Can’t you follow instructions?!”
It did not belittle or berate me for my mistake. It simply kept going without interruption, almost like “No worries. Let’s just take a left on the next street. We’re good.”
Instead of becoming frustrated with ourselves for veering off our charted course, take a breath and tell yourself “No problem. I’ll just take the next option.”
Second, Google Maps just kept going. It never stopped guiding me to my destination. And what’s even more, no matter how far off course I went, it still kept guiding me back to the place I needed to go.
It can be super easy to throw up our arms in defeat when we get off track (happened to me many a time). That’s a natural reaction for most of us.
But as I’ve experienced, throwing in the towel will not only prevent you from reaching our destination but can also adversely impact your abilities in the future.
Who knew Google Maps could be so inspirational??