5 Essential Steps to Get Back On Track to Your Dreams

I lost track of myself a bit during the last few weeks. I found myself getting caught up in what other people were doing and feeling pressure to do the same. Sometimes this happens. You lose track of your dreams and start going in another direction.

For me it came in the form of finding guests for the podcast. I started looking at who other podcasts were having on and thinking that I had to interview that person too. I made a huge list of possible guests for the show based solely on who was is most popular to have on a podcast this month.

That’s not where I ever wanted to go with the show, but I found myself being pulled in that direction. I was trying to be just like everyone else by having who everyone else had on their shows on mine. It was all wrong and I knew it.

Luckily, I recognized it before I contacted anyone on my new list of possible guests. I scrapped the list I’d made, reassessed, and got myself back on the right track. It was the right thing to do and I’m glad I figured it out sooner rather than later.

This is a problem we all have at times. We see what is going on around us and it pulls us from our original pursuit of our dreams. We see another direction to go in and wonder if it would be better. Other people are doing it so I have to do it too, we think to ourselves before wandering off our paths.

Sometimes we have difficulty even realizing we’ve done this and when we do our original path seems so far away, so impossible to get to, that we wonder if we can ever return.

I have good news for you. You can start on the road to your dreams again. Here are some tips that will help you do just that.

How can we get back on track when we find ourselves veering off in a different direction?

Stop. If you realize you aren’t going in the right direction stop what your doing. Just stop. You’ll need to take some time to redirect yourself. Stillness will help.

Assess the new direction. Sometimes when we set out on a path we aren’t 100 percent sure it is correct. It might need some tweaking. It might be the wrong path all together, but it takes time to figure it out. Assess your new direction. How does it feel? Does it feel better to you than what you were doing before? Is it more in line with who you are? If so, this new direction might be exactly what you need. Enjoy it.

Refocus on your goal. If this new direction isn’t right for you, take some time to reacquaint yourself with your original goal. Where are you going? What is your dream? What are you ultimately trying to achieve?

Review your original plan. Take another look at your original course of action. If it needs refining do it now before you start down that road again.

Be kind to yourself. I always say this, but it is so important. When you notice that you’ve gotten a bit off track don’t beat yourself up about it. Self-compassion is such a deeply important concept and it will help you get to where you are going much more than self-criticism will.

We all make mistakes. Correct yours and move on.

Realizing that you are off course can be annoying when it happens, but getting back on track usually isn’t as difficult as you might think.