On Sunday I travelled to deepest, darkest Gillingham to catch-up and play poker with my one-time colleague and long-time buddy Dan.

After spending six hours at the poker table and winning back my entrance fee (and putting the world to rights with Dan), I headed to the station go home.

To my dismay, my train was delayed.

To my further dismay, that delay became a cancellation.

I had no choice but get another train.  One of those Sunday services that stops every five minutes at places with names like Old Snodberry, Little Bottomley and Upper Snoring.

A sluggish, plodding excuse of a train.

And to say the journey was frustrating is putting it mildly.

My carriage sweltered like a sauna, my T-shirt was drenched in sweat and babies’ screams rattled through my head.

Even worse, my iPhone battery was on 11%.  And 45 minutes into the journey, my phone died. 

As I stared out the window and let my thoughts ruminate (nothing else to do), I realised this:

Yes, the journey was frustrating… 

And yes - I was thirsty, hungry, tired and couldn’t check my emails, let alone fire up a few games of blitz chess.

But…

I was still on the right journey.  I was still heading back to London.  And as tempting as it was to get off the train and find another way home, I knew that wouldn’t be a smart move.

Here’s why I’m writing about all this:

Sometimes we see challenges as a sign that we’re heading in the wrong direction.  Or look at frustrations or ill-fortune on our journeys as a sign that there’s a problem with the journey itself. 

I don’t just mean train journeys. 

I mean the journeys we take through life with our jobs, money, relationships, health – and everything else.

Of course, sometimes you are heading in the wrong direction or travelling on the wrong path. 

But don’t conflate “struggles along the way” with “not heading the right way”.  

They’re not the same.

Sometimes things are just frustrating.  Complications come up.  Shit happens.

And it does us well to bear this in mind.

Because if we start changing direction when we’re already on the right path, that could be a big mistake.

That’s my thought for today.

 - Tom

p.s. If you’re wondering “How do I tell the difference between struggles along the way and heading the right way”, this might help:

See if you can spot this difference on small things and notice how this difference feels.

Then go from there.

Awareness is the starting point.

And the more awareness you have, the more you’ll feel the difference when the bigger things come along.

If you’d like to go deeper – and explore this 1 on 1 – here's the link to set up a free coaching call with me:

https://calendly.com/followingfulfilment