This week I wrote my own obituary

I grew up in the Alps, surrounded by mountains. I loved it.

On weekends, you'd just pick a summit and go.

Once your goal is set, go one step at a time. At every intersection, every corner, direction is easy: up!

I love the simplicity behind it. No overthinking. And reaching the top is always satisfying.

Choose☑️ > Walk🚶 > Enjoy🥳

The destination—the summit—is your True North🏔️

Here, in the Netherlands where I live, nature is amazing: hundred of kilometers in every direction, beautiful and varied landscape.

And yet, hiking is much harder to me.

It sounds dumb, but here there are no summit. No easy destination. 

A thousand direction is no direction. I struggle with that.

What does my obituary have to do with that?

In leadership and psychology, lack of direction leads to lack of clarity and confusion.

Every decision in life has to be evaluated against a goal in end.

No goal = no direction = no compass = energy loss and stagnation

If you have no strategy in your organisation, how do you know whether to invest in this project? How do you know whether to go to this event or another?

As an individual, how do you know whether to have this ice-cream or change job when you don’t have a goal in life?

Writing your obituary will define your True North

• What legacy do you want to leave?

• What do you want to achieve in your life?

• What do you want people to remember you for?

This is the second habit of Stephen R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: “Begin with the end in mind”

So, start with the end in mind.

What do you want to achieve in your life?

Write it down in the form of your obituary.

Once you know the destination, you will have clarity.
Once you know the destination, decisions will become easy.

You will have a compass.

It’s gonna be impected.
Probably your goals will change.
Probably you will only achieve half.
It doesn’t matter.

You need direction now.

Do it.

My own obituary, you ask?

It’s still in progress, but it’s there. And now I have a clear goal and a clear way to get there.

Now I have clarity. You can have it to.

Maybe I’ll share it some day🤔

To you own growth,
Jean

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