What if we followed our inner GPS rather than external validation?
Maybe we might just live the wildest, most exuberant life...
Growing up, we have learned to always judge an action before taking it.
When we get an idea or a whiff of curiosity, we evaluate it against our long-term goals, the fixed plans in our heads, and view the 10-steps-ahead version…the potential finished version…and then most times, decide it doesn’t fit and move on with inaction.
For the longest time, I thought this was the right way to live.
It’s a productive way to live…
one where we (think we) prioritize our goals, our ambition.
So even whenever I went for a walk, commuted to work, or found 10 idle minutes in the day, I optimized for productivity.
I used to plug in my AirPods and put on a podcast about growing businesses.
I’ve realized that this way of life, taught and celebrated as the right way, is actually draining.
It pulls us out of sync with who we truly are, what we want to do, and ironically limits the life we live.
Why?
The inner GPS, or our curiosity, is what guides us intelligently in this universe.
Intuition: the intelligent cosmic connection
As a subprocess in this meticulously interconnected, enormous process that is the universe, our limited minds are an unintelligent tool to guide us.
The thinking mind only recycles old experiences in new ways, often in ways that are intended to protect us or keep us safe.
The inner GPS, on the other hand, call it intuition, or the pull of curiosity, actually guides us on how to participate intelligently in the present unfolding of reality.
The nudges of curiosity don’t make sense in the moment to our logical minds…but they are connected to the larger process, which we may or may not understand later.
Following our inner GPS is how we’re meant to live.
Children know this
Children do it.
My kids know what to do without thinking.
They get an idea, they take action. Or at least they want to…and these days I’m trying not to limit them (which is usually my autopilot response).
In the name of ‘good behavior’ or moulding to social norms, we as parents (and the larger society) stifle this inner voice by the time the kids have grown up.
More luck, more magic
So when we follow our inner GPS, we can follow the swings and larger movements of life. We can find more serendipitous moments, moments of luck, things falling into place.
It keeps us open and receptive to how reality is unfolding in the present moment and guides us on the most effective and exuberant path to our goals.
Our goals, the ones we truly desire, and our inner GPS come from the same source.
Think about why you want certain things…or why you're curious about some things over others. There's rarely a logical reason. It just is.
So life isn’t about end goals.
Those are inevitable if we get out of the way (i.e. stop thinking) and follow our inner GPS.
Then, we can relax and actually enjoy the journey.
Soak in full moments of aliveness, of expanded awareness… noticing the beautiful intricacies of life and living in marvel.
Whether it is the beautiful shades of the sky, the sway of leaves on a windy day, or what our children are really trying to tell us with uncontained excitement.
We can truly live those moments without concern about our end goals.
We can fully immerse ourselves in the moment we are in now.
The goals will happen…
and we will live an exuberant, beautiful, and adventurous journey when we follow our inner GPS, our personal, cosmic connection to the universe.