5 Part Series: Part 2 How a Surprise Detour Became Our Scenic Shortcut

“I should be __________ by now.” This is something I tell myself every year- and sometimes every day.

“I should be making X amount of money by now.” or “I should have X amount of assets by now.” or “I should look more in shape by now.” 

It’s easy to struggle with expecting ourselves to be “at a certain point” in life by a certain time. I believe this narrative comes from a few places: societal expectations and comparisons, past experiences, and pressure we put on ourselves.

And usually what follows this expectation is disappointment when we realize we may not be exactly where we hoped we would be by the time we expected.

Once I was traveling with my family on a road trip and on that trip there was construction and of course we saw the orange sign that says “detour” and we automatically sighed in frustration and thought “No! We need to get to our destination by a certain time. Now, we’re going to have to go another way. It’ll probably take longer.” 

So we followed the detour path and to our surprise– not only did we get to our destination faster but the route was more scenic. Cars were in a rush to get back on track so traffic was flowing.

So, what’s the point? You made it to your destination and…?

Well actually, that is the point. I mention that story to say– we’ve been conditioned to think that if we don’t get to a certain outcome by a particular time then we are “behind in life” or “missing out” or “it’ll take us longer to get there”. But did it ever occur to you that a detour might actually be a better way of still reaching the same destination? 

These “hiccups” in life or unexpected twists and turns still help to lead us to where we’re going.  

Even if you aren’t exactly where you thought you wanted to be at the time you expected to be there I encourage you to remember that sometimes these “detours” in life can catapult us even faster to the destination and help give us a different perspective while on the journey- which is priceless.

Tell me about a “detour” (unexpected twist or turn) in your life that could be an event, moment, etc. and how looking back it actually helped you get to the same destination but in a better way than you realized. I’d love to hear your experience- please comment below.