If you don’t know where you want to go, follow the advice of the Cheshire cat. Try being open to the possibility of any road that may be as good, or even better, than planning — and certainly than taking advice from other people, all of whom will have their own agenda.

Here’s Alice talking with the Cheshire cat in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. Like many of us, when faced with a choice, she has no idea where she ought to be heading.

Alice came to a fork in the road. “Which road do I take?” she asked.”Where do you want to go?” responded the Cheshire cat.”I don’t know,” Alice answered.”Then,” said the cat, “it doesn’t matter.”

“Shouldn’t I listen to advice?”
Of course, but beware. Others may try to set you on a path that they wish they’d taken themselves. Then, how do you know they have your best interests at heart? What seems a good idea to them, may be a bad idea for you. Even those closest to you don’t necessarily know you as well as they think they do. Even you may not know yourself as well as you think you do.

Life comes up with challenges and it’s not until they arise that you have any idea whether you will be able to cope with them and follow the road they lead you on — or whether the challenge is too great and you need to take another direction.

“Should I prefer stability or excitement?”
Life is inherently changeable. Although you may think you’ve chosen wisely, you may find that your path veers off in a different direction. Being open to changes will mean that you won’t panic when this happens. Sometimes a change of direction is a good thing. There’s no guarantee that your first path is the only one that will work for you.

Taking a side step and going a different way can also lead to an exciting and interesting future. Stability is pretty much an illusion. The only totally stable state for any of us is death. Until then, we might as well enjoy the ride and forget about the bumps and bruises.

Don’t stick on your old path, hanging on grimly. Have the courage to alter your ways and accept that a new path which appears unexpectedly may be just the incentive you need. Many workplace myths have a strong whiff of puritanism about them. “Staying on the straight and narrow” is one of these. Fortunately, it will almost certainly be impossible — if you did manage it, just how boring a life would that be!

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