You Are Allowed to Outgrow the Plan

There are few things I love more than a good plan.

Give me a goal, a fresh notebook, a calendar and a set of colored pens, and suddenly I have my entire life figured out.

At least on paper.

Then life has the audacity to happen.

Priorities change. New opportunities show up. Something that once felt exciting starts feeling more like an obligation. Occasionally, we even discover that the thing we've been working so hard toward isn't something we want anymore.

That's where it gets complicated.

Changing the plan can feel a lot like quitting.

Especially when you've already told everybody what you were going to do.

Now there are expectations.

Maybe money has been invested. Time certainly has. You've probably rearranged other parts of your life to make room for this thing.

Walking away—or even changing direction—can make all of that feel wasted.

But was it?

You Made That Plan With What You Knew Then

I think we forget this part.

The person who created the original plan didn't know everything you know today.

She hadn't had the experiences you've had since.

Certain lessons hadn't been learned yet. Opportunities you couldn't have predicted hadn't appeared. Your priorities may have been completely different.

Why should that version of you get to make every decision for the person you are now?

There's nothing wrong with honoring what you once wanted while acknowledging that you want something different today.

Both can be true.

Sometimes We Stay Because We've Already Invested So Much

This is where things get really uncomfortable.

"But I've already put so much into it."

Money.

Years.

Education.

Relationships.

Energy.

Starting over can make all of that investment feel like it was for nothing, so we keep going.

Another year gets added.

Then another.

Eventually, we're maintaining a life we don't particularly want because we've already spent too much time building it.

That's a pretty expensive reason to keep going in the wrong direction.

Changing course doesn't erase what came before. You still have the experience, lessons, relationships and skills you gained along the way.

Very little is truly wasted.

Sometimes it simply becomes part of what prepares you for whatever comes next.

Not Every Dream Needs to Become a Lifetime Commitment

Some dreams belong to a season.

That's okay.

You can love something deeply and eventually be finished with it.

A career that once fulfilled you may stop doing so.

The business you couldn't wait to build might evolve into something completely different.

Perhaps a goal you chased for years finally becomes possible, only for you to realize you don't want it nearly as much as you thought you did.

That realization can be disappointing.

It can also be freeing.

We give ourselves permission to change our clothes, our homes, our hairstyles and even the people we spend time with as we grow.

Somehow, changing a major life plan feels like it requires a congressional hearing.

It doesn't.

There's a Difference Between Quitting and Choosing Differently

Of course, every difficult season isn't a sign that it's time to walk away.

Sometimes things are simply hard.

Frustration passes. Motivation comes and goes. Fear has also talked plenty of people out of things they genuinely wanted.

So this isn't about abandoning the plan every time something becomes uncomfortable.

It's about being willing to ask whether the plan still belongs to you.

Do I still want this?

Not, Can I finish it?

Not, What will people think if I stop?

And definitely not, But haven't I already come too far?

Do I still want it?

The answer deserves to matter.

Your Life Doesn't Owe Anyone Consistency

There's a strange pressure to remain consistent with the version of ourselves we've already introduced to the world.

Once you've said, "This is who I am," changing your mind can feel almost embarrassing.

People may have opinions.

Somebody will probably remind you of what you said three years ago.

And because the internet never forgets anything, there's always the possibility that a Facebook memory will show up with receipts. 😂

Let it.

Growth would be pretty pointless if we were required to remain exactly who we were when we started.

The goal isn't to create a plan at 30, 40, 50 or 60 and spend the rest of our lives proving we can stick to it.

I'd rather build a life that continues to fit.

That might mean changing direction.

It could require letting something go.

Occasionally, the next step looks nothing like the one you originally planned.

None of that means you failed.

It might simply mean you've grown.

Something to think about...

Is there something in your life you're continuing to pursue mostly because you once decided you would?

Take away the time already invested.

Forget what you've told everyone else.

Set aside what the original plan said.

Knowing what you know now, would you choose it again?

If the answer has changed, maybe you're allowed to change too.