So if you've been following along with me closely (which is of course what the internet is all about right? fastidious and careful focus and absorption of ideas slowly?) you know that I've been thinking a good bit about how questions shape our lives.
For my wrap-up on this topic this week, I'll share the question that has been most 'live' for me as I've been in the midst of transition.
Transition for many of us isn't just a short period of time but a way of life. And the problem with transition is that it can be disorienting and overwhelming.
That's kind of how I've felt these past couple of weeks as I've been ramping up into a new position with InterVarsity. For those of you who are new, I've been a campus minister on campus for 14 years--9 at Virginia Commonwealth and 5 back at UNC, where I graduated from.
About a week ago I officially started as an Area Director for the Central Carolinas area, supervising UNC-Chapel Hill, Elon, Davidson and UNC-Charlotte.
As I've waded through manuals and sat through training sessions, there's just tons to think about. And I tend to be a global thinker, so I can get dizzied by how much there is to do, what could happen, what should happen, and all the rest...and then occasionally I get really nervous about totally screwing something up.
So to break this transition down a bit, I've had one question that I've come back to again and again over the past couple of weeks: "What's the next good or wise decision that I can make?"
Good trajectory and good "global" outcomes are the result of lots of small, good, right, wise decisions. So I'm trying to dial it down from thinking big-picture to focusing on what needs to happen next. Don't stress quite so much about how everything will turn out. I can't control that right now anyway. What I can control is me and what I do next.
What's the next good or wise decision that I need to make? Or put another way: what's the next good thing that I need to do?
Maybe for some of you out there, feeling similarly overwhelmed with life, this question will help you to settle in a little bit as it has for me.
2 comments:
I agree completely. Thinking about the big picture always makes things seem overwhelming and stressful, so you should really just focus on what needs to be done next. In my experience, the end result is that you saved yourself a load of unnecessary stress and worry.
Hey Dolly, thanks for checking in!
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