Imagine yourself as a kid, sitting in the “way back” of your Brady-Bunch, paneled station wagon (without seat belts, if you are of a certain age.) It’s early spring and you are taking a road trip with your family.

No matter how long the trip took, you or your sibling asked the inevitable question: are we there yet?

Often, we think more about the destination rather than the journey. It’s about “there” or “when,” as in: when I get there, when I move there, when this is built, when I get a new job, when Monday comes, when I finish this project, when I lose weight.

Why are we rushing our world away?

After a year of isolation, we are all experts in waiting. Waiting for vaccinations. Waiting for the transmission rate to decrease. Waiting to feel safe again.

Perhaps it will be safe for us to take a family vacation together in the next few months. Will we still be asking “Are we there yet?” type questions?

Probably. It’s just what we do.

But, this type of thinking creates an uncertainty or a sense of lacking because it may imply that something is missing now.

One way around this is to embrace a path of mastery:

𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑒𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔.

“Waiting until” may feel draining and may lead to frustration.

What if you live every day knowing you don’t have all the answers, haven’t mastered everything, and aren’t as experienced or knowledgeable as you can be?

Does this make you any less fulfilled?

We are always learning, always improving. A mastery mindset reminds us that we are never “there,” nor should “there” be something we strive for.

Focus less on “there” — instead, on getting there. The journey. Don’t worry if something isn’t ready.

Just enjoy the ride, less the paneling.