The Terrible R's

It's not always easy to follow the path that we have set out in life without having encountered some winding roads along the way.
Journeys are never really like straight lines but more like curved ones resembling mountains. I like to think of goals as looking like those 'pieces of art' that you do in elementary art class. The one where your teacher says so today we are going to take our line 'for a walk'. Does anybody's line ever stay the same? It's all muddled, criss crossed and pretty much looks like a chaotic string.

Surprisingly we can say the same about our lives and our plans. We have an idea or goal of what we want to do, we attempt to follow this but then somewhere along the road things end up being not quite what we expected. When we are faced with challenges such as these it's definitely time to stop and face our terrible R's. Refocus, Rethink and Redo.

Refocusing can seem like a daunting task to many and more so to those of us who aren't aware of our life situations taking control of us instead of us taking control of it. Refocusing helps us to practice mindfulness by allowing ourselves to take the time to think about whether or not we have be following the path that we so anxiously set out to follow. When we take the time to acknowledge our achievements and failures we gain a better sense of how we can change aspects of ourselves and possibly our circumstances to work around our ultimate goal at the end.

Much of refocusing is really doing a lot of rethinking. Both are seen as a 'couple' dependent on the other. Rethinking allows us to discover if our goals are really met and also gives us the opportunity to decide whether or not we really want to focus on this goal or maybe shift to something more attainable. Nothing is cast in stone and we can always make changes based on our wants and needs. When we rethink, we allow our self time for introspection and self-discovery as many times we make rash decisions without really spending a considerable amount of time thinking about the repercussions.

While some may disagree with being able to redo things in their lives based on circumstances and situations, one thing is useful about the concept of redoing. It gives us a second chance at perfecting something. It may be a bit far fetched if you've graduated with a degree in nursing and you decide that culinary arts is really your passion. You may not exactly want to redo an entire program in hospitality and management just so that you can be a chef however, in the long run the act of 'redoing' may actually be beneficial in the long run as it will not only provide new opportunities for growth but also provide you with a broader perspective as well as the chance to learn new things.

No one says that starting from scratch isn't hard. In fact kudos to those who have done things all over again. These huge leaps have not only been gratifying but have been experiences that have made life more fulfilling. Often times the ones with the harshest struggles are the ones that end up the most content in life. That's because they weren't afraid to mess up and have to redo anything. Redoing actually gives us the chance to fall in 'love' with whatever we are doing again as we treat it as a first experience and with every first experience we give it our best.

When forming goals always factor incorporating the terrible R's at some point. It will definitely help to stare you on the right track and ensure that you are on the road to achieving success.


Below is the wonderful story of Former Miss USA Universe 1998 Shawnae Jebbia who chose to 'redo' and aspect of her life despite later having a hearing impairment. She was a television host and a successful fitness trainer and has now decided to pursue graduate studies in nursing. This inspiring video shows us real perseverance despite having hiccups along our path to success!