With all of these Rail Projects underway, what direction will you take?

What Railway Line are you on?

Once we become adults, and usually without realising it, we humans have formed a lifelong relationship with a particular “Railway line”.

Due to a combination of temperament, genetics, upbringing and life experience (otherwise known as “Personality”), we have subconsciously chosen a direction on which to travel from then onwards.

A “Personality Railway Line” is similar to a “Pattern of Reactions to Life” that are fairly predictable, and whilst some of the patterning works well for us, some doesn’t.

When it doesn’t, we see amongst other things relationship breakdown, poor self-care, addiction, unnecessary stress, and a variety of mental health disorders.

But we tend to stay on the same track, because that is what we’ve been programmed to do.

Unless there is a crisis to force us to jump the tracks onto another line, we remain headed in the same direction.

The crises which typically act as catalysts for change include loss of relationship, loss of a job, loss of a loved one, loss of health – all of which are usually serious enough to force us to take stock.

How often do we hear after a cancer scare that people change how they eat and how they spend their time.

How often do staff change their behaviour after the boss has said “shape up or ship out”.

How often do we finally seek out counselling when our partner says they are leaving.

Most of us tend to cruise through life doing what we’ve always done with “our Personality being the Train Driver who is asleep at the wheel.”

Without a mechanism to override it, the Automatic Pilot will assuredly keep us on track, EVEN IF IT IS THE WRONG TRACK.

Some of the more effective ways to wrest back control from the instinctive reactions which determine our lives, is to develop higher levels of self-awareness and start to reflect on actions BEFORE we take them.

Maybe some of these examples apply to you or a recent situation you’ve been in:

• Will I abuse that guy because he said something to upset me or will I…?
• Will I become anxious about proposed changes even BEFORE I understand them or will I…?
• Will I sink into depression because I didn’t get the promotion I deserved or will I…?

The definition of insanity is “doing the same thing and expecting a different result”.

If you want better outcomes, consider working out whether the track you’re on will give you both the journey AND the destination you desire. Jumping tracks won’t guarantee a perfect life but a mindful approach to existence usually delivers greater rewards than its opposite.