I am horrible at directions. My senses are almost always calibrated to the complete opposite direction.
So since GPS has been a thing, whether it was the 2007 Garmin I bought from a pawn shop for $50 or Google Maps on my iPhone, I’ve used that to get around just about anywhere – even short destinations around Columbus.
I’ve always justified this by saying that the technology has knowledge that I don’t have (road closures, traffic, optimized routes) and I still believe that to be true.
But lately, I’ve started foregoing the use of my GPS.
It all started with this newsletter and then my subsequent reading of The Magic of Thinking Big. There is a section of that book that talks about the two ways we encounter new challenges:
- We can either embrace a challenge with a positive mindset that we will figure it out, or
- We can meet the challenge with hesitation and self deprecate.
I’ve taken driving short distances around the city, though I may not know the optimized route or specific directions, to be perfect mini-challenges on a day-to-day basis.
If I know I want to get from Point A to Point B, I then tell myself that I can navigate there without a GPS. Then, when I actually succeed in that challenge, it reinforces my confidence and sense of agency.
The same is true of this writing.
Every day that I create something small and put it out into the world without asking for permission or needing intervention, I build my own sense of agency. My self worth increases and I become more confident that I can achieve the lifestyle I’m designing for myself.
I’d love to hear what types of mini-challenges you can put yourself up to to build your own sense of agency.