What's Next?

When a seemingly random event (or set of related "random" events) create a pattern or redirects your thinking is it coincidental?  How much should you trust your intuition?  When something or someone "nudges" you how should you respond?

At the Vistage All City meeting, I was re-introduced to M.F. (consultant, speaker, author,....). We shared our "elevator stories" of business, life, and passions and moved on, followed up with some email exchanges.  Last night I reconnected with J.D. (Accenture Colleague) and we updated each other on life's journey.  When someone asks what's new in your life and what have you been doing - it's a quandary of how to answer. M.F. was even more direct (and deeply complex) - "What's next?"

In business, you would answer this with your strategic plan (mission, vision, values, strategies and objectives), followed by the action plans (tasks, milestones, timeframe etc.), projects and annual budget.  Several months ago, I purchased the "Personal Compass" from The Grove Consultants Intl. - a personal workbook for visioning and planning your personal life. Unfortunately the 12x18 spiral bound workbook is too cumbersome to carry around for answering in a casual way What's Next.

Personal planning is one of the last things we do.  Why?  Part of the fear of answering What's Next (especially the short term and tactic activities) is that you might be planting land mines ahead in your field of dreams.  Which is why personal planning and time to reflect is so important. 

But the real complexity of What's Next are the lingering mysterious whispers nudging you toward your purpose and meaning in life.