Move Forward but Don’t Miss the Backward View

Isn’t this a cool photo? The clouds in back of the car are reflected in the rear view mirror and match the clouds in the sky in front of our moving car.

It made me reflect on looking back and looking forward. And that is what we do a lot of in January of each year, don’t we?

Often people say things like “don’t look back” or “keep your eyes on the goal”. Phrases that urge us to keep moving forward instead of wallowing in the past. Yes, wallowing is not a good thing. But if we just keep ploughing onward without looking in the rear view mirror from time to time, we may of course repeat mistakes, but even worse, we will not be able to gauge how far we have come. And we wouldn’t want to miss opportunities for celebrating improvements, would we?

So I say, as we look forward to the new year, let’s set our vision for the year and work to get there. Maybe your vision is making stronger connections with family and friends. Maybe it is a work-related goal. Maybe it has to do with getting healthier or volunteering more. Maybe it is to read more books and drink more wine. (Just thinking personally here….) But whatever it is, look forward - and look in the rear view mirror too from time to time. Look at how far you have come. Look at how you were able to be resilient. Look at how you managed despite whatever. And celebrate! Celebrate small steps forward because they are really not small at all compared to where you started. Celebrate your evolution.

I have a vision of a world of Noticers. People all over the world realizing that if they just Notice, their lives and the lives of everyone around them will be so much richer. I have a very long way to go before I realize this goal. But if I look in the rear view mirror, I remember that a few years ago almost nobody was discussing the value of Noticing what you see. So I will move forward, but will also glance through the rear view mirror from time to time. After all I need some valid reasons to celebrate the spread of Noticing with a big piece of yummy cake.

Won’t you join me?

©2016 Margery Leveen Sher

The Noticer’s Guide to Living and Laughing…..Change Your Life Without Changing Your Routine is now available on Amazon, Nook, and iTunes.  Read the reviews and purchase here. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OZTM73U 

MARGERY IS AVAILABLE TO KEYNOTE YOUR MEETING OR CONFERENCE with a motivational talk filled with both startling wisdom and humongous laughs:

“Notice What You See and Be a Hero at Work”