The Drift: How Good People Get Lost
I don't know that I have ever felt like I'm "In the zone". I think there are times I've felt confident and comfortable about where life is headed, but never invincible. I do remember several years back when things seemed like they were going great. I had good growth, good trajectory, and I felt like I was getting ahold of this life thing.
Then it happens. You look up and you look like someone who just woke up from a long nap on a raft in the ocean. Where am I? You had a destination in mind and somehow you are no where near where you thought you would be. The drift.
You don’t have to do anything to drift, you just have to do nothing. And that's what I did. Nothing. My confidence grabbed the steering wheel and I took things for granted I shouldn't have. Everything in my life all took a hit at the same time. I lowered my guard, I went through the motions, I become unintentional and the next thing I knew, I was lost. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before and wouldn't wish on anyone.
Human beings, just like organizations, do not naturally drift towards growth. In fact, they all seem to obey the Second Law of Thermodynamics. Essentially, things tend to degrade and become less organized over time. If we do not integrate a proactive plan for growth you will naturally go backwards.
In addition, organizations never drift towards simplicity and structure. They gravitate towards complexity and chaos. This is because organizations are made up of human beings. Human beings are the root of this and have the same tendencies.
When I reference drifting, I'm not talking about bad people doing bad things. I'm talking about good people standing still and losing ground without even realizing it. Even if you hold your ground, look around, everything is growing and moving forward. So if you're just holding your ground, you're falling behind.
The point here isn’t to create anxiety or beat you up. It’s to wake you up. It’s to remind you: there’s more in you than you think. Drifting happens to the best of us, but to think you're above it, or to not give it merit, is a risky endeavor.
If you’re reading this and realize you might be drifting, here’s a couple things to know:
When you’re in that place, don’t relate to it. Don’t rest in it. Don’t partner with the mindset that lives there. There’s a victim mentality encroaching on you, and if you’re not careful, you’ll start buying what it’s selling. People will tell you it’s okay to stay where you are. That you deserve a break. That letting go is no big deal. They’ll even invite you to join a whole crowd of people who think the same way. Don’t. Do not relate, rest, or partner with people, things, or mindsets of that place.
Practice regular self reflection. When you take time to really check in with yourself, you catch the drift early. You notice when you’ve started moving without a destination. You spot the small compromises before they turn into big detours. Self-reflection keeps you honest. It forces you to ask the hard questions:
Am I still moving toward who I want to be?
Am I living by the values I said mattered to me?
Am I settling for easy when I was made for more?
The point isn’t to be perfect. It’s to stay awake. Stay intentional. Stay moving forward.
Employ a Feedback Loop. We are all master sales people. You may not think you are, but you are a master at selling yourself. You can convince yourself daily you're at least doing better than the lazy bum next to you, but what does this have to do with the best version of you? Recruit a small team of people who are close enough to you to know, and courageous enough to tell you when you need a kick in the butt.
The drift is real. It’s sneaky, it’s slow, and if you’re not intentional, it’ll steal months, even years, before you realize what happened. You’re not broken if you’ve found yourself there. You’re human. But now you see it, you have a choice. Stay awake. Stay sharp. Surround yourself with people who tell you the truth, not what’s comfortable. Keep asking the hard questions. Keep aiming higher. You weren’t made to float through life, you were made to move.
Today’s Forced Challenge: I want you to FORCE yourself to attack at least one of these challenges
1. Daily Check-In: Spend 5 minutes at the end of each day asking, "Did I move closer to or farther from my goals today?"
2. Catch a Compromise: Identify one place this week where you’ve been justifying staying comfortable instead of growing.
3. Accountability Check: Text a friend today: "Hold me accountable to [specific goal] this week. No excuses."
4. Uncomfortable Action Challenge: Pick one uncomfortable action you’ve been avoiding and do it in the next 24 hours.
5. Future You Letter: Write a short letter from your future self, thanking you for refusing to drift today. Read it whenever you feel yourself slipping.
No one drifts into discipline. No one slides into strength. Growth takes intention. You have full control of who you are and where you are going. Don't let anyone or anything tell you otherwise.
"Some people drift through their entire life. They do it one day at a time, one week at a time, one month at a time. It happens so gradually they are unaware of how their lives are slipping away until it's too late."
— Mary Kay Ash