Where is Your North?

You know the saying … “If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there.”

How much time do you spend thinking about where you are and where you want to be? Are you even on the right road?

If you’re like most people, the business of everyday life keeps you from focusing on what it is you want in the different areas of both your personal and professional life.

In relationships, business, career, finances … unless you know what you really want … how will you know what steps you need to take to move you there?

I often use this activity in my keynotes and workshops to very quickly show everyone a stunning visual of the confusion most everyone has when trying to figure out where they are going. You can do it with your family or work team. I call it “True North”.

How to:   Ask everyone to stand and extend their right arm so it is pointing straight out in front of them. Explain to them that their right arm is in essence the needle of a compass. In just a minute you are going to ask them to close their eyes and follow your instructions.  

Say to them: “Everyone close your eyes and with your right arm as the needle of the compass I want you to turn your entire body and point in the direction that you believe to be True North.”

Encourage them by saying 'No peeking," "You're doing great!" After about 10 seconds ask them, “Imagine this is the team or family that you were trying to get all going in one direction?” and then ask them to open their eyes.

It is quickly evident that everyone believes is pointing in a different direction, attempting to locate their North.

Now pick a spot in the room that everyone can easily see. With their eyes open ask everyone to point to that spot. The team is now all going in the same direction.

Have you been on a team or in a family that looked like this? What happens when you and everyone else don’t know the objective?

Every day you get a variety of choices – many that appear good for you or your organization.  But, if the results of those choices do not move you closer to your north, then it is probably not a good choice for you. It is easy to lose your way and get caught up in tasks and activities that produce very little for you.

Where is your North? Where do you want to go? How do you define success in your relationships? Health? Fitness? Finances? 

Decide what it is you really want, point your compass north, and take the first step.

For more ideas on adding game thinking and gamification to your work and play go to:  http://www.entreprenowonline.com/gamification/ 

Let’s play!

 

About the Author: Monica Cornetti

Founder and CEO, Sententiawww.SententiaGames.com
www.monicacornetti.com

A gamification speaker and designer, Monica Cornetti is rated as the #1 Gamification Guru in the World by UK-Based Leaderboarded. She is the author of the book Totally Awesome Training Activity Guide: Put Gamification to Work for You, writes The Gamification Report blog, and host of the weekly Gamification Talk Radio program.

She is a professional consultant and known for being one of the leading players in thinking differently to create different results.  In fact, as an early adopter, she has been designing and delivering gamification programs for her clients since 2008.