You're Not Gonna Know Until You Try It

Have you ever done any online shopping? You see that shirt, pants, or dress that is just so cute you've got to have it so you buy it knowing that if you really need to you can return it (but you are sure you won't need to return it because you are sure that you'll love it). Then the day that you have been waiting for arrives and you open the box and pull out the item that you have dreaming about for 5-7 business days and you can't wait to put it on. You run to your bedroom and after putting it on you discover that nothing about that item is the way you thought it would be; the size is wrong, the color is different, the fabric is terrible, and even the style isn't what it appeared to be online. You put it back in the box, affix the return label, and vow never to buy clothes without trying them on first.

When it comes to fashion we have all learned the hard way that nothing is as it seems. Your size isn't always your size, things do look different on the hanger and some styles and colors simply aren't flattering to you. So why then do we constantly "buy" things before we "try them on" in the areas that really matter in life? When it comes to our careers, parenting styles, relationship styles, goals, dreams, and passions, we often buy them hook line and sinker before we have any clue what we are actually getting into. Don't you think that you would be more successful in all of these areas if you did a little more "trying" before you actually bought?

Take your career for example. Many of us go to school assuming that we will like a particular career so we take an appropriate line of study in order to achieve the necessary licenses, degrees, credentials, and so forth believing that we will have to wait to actually be working in that field before we will know if it is a good fit. While it is true that you can't be totally sure until you are actually doing the job, there are many things that you can do to "try" on a career before you waste weeks, months, or even years, not to mention thousands of dollars, barking up the wrong tree. You can research online, meet with someone who is already in that field, do an internship, etc.

Now it may seem easier to imagine trying on a career than a parenting or relationship style but many of the same rules apply. Many of us pick up self help books about these subjects and figure the only way to test them is to immediately put them into practice and deal with the pros and cons later. You can be much more proactive than that; you can look online for testimonials, you can meet with people who have tried a similar style, you can consult a counselor or clergy person and ask for advice, and so on. You really should be testing the waters for the way that you will relate to your children, spouse, and other important people in your life in an effort to discover methods that will work best for you and those in your life rather than grabbing the latest best seller and hoping it works.

These are just a few examples of areas in your life that you can apply this principle to you but the list really is endless. Essentially any area in your life in which you are trying to make a decision, enact a change, or improve, can be applied to this technique.

For me this concept was always a good one but I really struggled when it came to the follow-through. I knew what I needed to do, I just didn't always have the ability to make it happen on my own. I needed others to brainstorm with me, bounce ideas off of, give me the brutal truth even when I wasn't willing to see it for myself, and encourage me to see it through to completion. This is where LifeWalking can come into play and be an invaluable tool. You can walk with someone through any of these issues or decisions and that person can help to guide you down the right path.

More on that next time.