Last week I talked about how helpful my Magnificent Metaphorical Time Machine is.
Travelling forward in time can help you see the outcome you want, without worrying about the messy and difficult process of actually getting there.
However, there is a cardinal rule to time travel:
Never. Travel. Backwards.
There is a reason backwards time travel is used as a plot device in movies. If you could change anything, it would have unintended consequences only pleasing to those who write novels and screenplays, or those who are entertained by the hilarity or terror that ensues.
Time travel is a metaphor. You can’t change anything about the past, or about how you got from there to here. Unlike the future, which you have at least some control over, there is really no point in revisiting the past.
The most likely consequence of travelling back in time will be to chastise yourself for something you did then, that now appears to be a grave mistake. And since you can’t undo whatever it is you did, that will lead into a spiral of discouragement and frustration.
It certainly won’t help you move forward.
Be kind to Past You.
Whatever you did in the past, you did the best you could with the information and resources available.
Let me say that again. It’s important.
Whatever you did in the past, you did the best you could with the information and resources available.
Starting from Here.
Here might feel like Lost. Here might feel like Not There Yet. Here might be a place you never intended to land and don’t really want to be.
But Here is where you are. You need to start the next part of your journey from here.
Whether you are finishing your PhD and figuring out what to do next, planning the last 15 (or 5) years before retirement, or somewhere in between, you can figure out the general direction you’d like to go and decide on some first steps.
Related Posts:
Juggling, jigsaws, and navigating by the stars: making reasonable plans
This post was edited and related posts were added December 2021.
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