Have you arrived?
As in, have you reached a point in your life where you're completely happy? Ready to just put yourself in park and watch the world go by?
I'm betting not, or you wouldn't be reading this. I know these people must exist. Right? Or is it simply a function of being human to never be completely happy?
What about those folks who meditate and claim to be in a complete Zen state? Or Great Grandfather who watches ME TV in his rocking chair all day, reliving the glory days of Maverick and The Rifleman? I would suggest even they are attempting to put themselves INTO a state of complete happiness, vs. being in one by default.
Life is a long series of iterations. We change from one day to the next. Sometimes we move forward, sometimes we move back. This happens not just day to day, but often hour to hour, or even minute to minute.
This week, I converted my latest book, Go Ahead & Laugh Vol II (an iteration by definition!) to Kindle. As I did so, I ran across numerous typos I now need to go and fix in the paper version. I swear I went through that original manuscript with a fine tooth comb – and yet....
When you realize you're off course with your diet, with your relationship, with your career, you try to course correct. Sometimes it's something small, other times, you take giant steps in a new direction.
There does come a time when you and I just have to, as Seth Godin puts it, 'ship it'. Publish the book. Marry the one you love. Buy the house. But even these seemingly permanent decisions are no longer as permanent as they once were.
Heck, marriage is hardly permanent - it hasn't been for years, and unless you're iterating your way through it every day, it likely won't last very long. Few people buy a home and live there the rest of their lives, and even if they do, you can bet they upgrade the carpet, the windows, or the kitchen. Even books come out with expanded, revised, and updated editions with 'bonus content'.
Nothing is truly permanent, and ultimately, that creates an active, ever-changing world. On a grand scale, a local scale, and on your personal scale.
Does that create unrest within you? Do you suddenly feel the urge to go back and make sure your last project is truly complete? That's OK. But it doesn't mean you have to go backward. Maybe your next iteration is a completely new project, a new goal. A new YOU.
Ultimately, life is an iterative process. If it's not, you're probably not really living. Or you're really completely happy with the status quo - and should write a book or start a coaching program - except that would require iteration.
It's up to you to direct your iterations – to know when to ship, to know when to revisit, to know when to move on to something new. Even 'knowing when' is an iterative process. The process to #WinAnyway is iterative - Review, Celebrate, Redesign, Act - it's a process of moving forward with strength and momentum.
Even if you've arrived - it doesn't have to be your last stop. #IterateAnyway.
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