Thirty years ago, a friend showed me a video of Les Brown. I still remember the moment. As I listened, something immediately resonated.
I recognised it before I understood it. That is what I want to do.
The certainty surprised me. The problem was that I had absolutely no idea how.
At the time, I was building my career in development banking. There was no visible path from where I was to where I suddenly sensed I wanted to be. No roadmap. No mentor. No explanation which made practical sense.
So I did what many people do. I stayed where I was. The knowing had not disappeared. But the path remained invisible.
Fifteen years passed. The desire never completely left me. Then life brought me back to a similar crossroads.
The difference was that this time the environment around me had changed significantly. The values conflict had become impossible to ignore. Staying was becoming increasingly difficult.
Yet the strangest part was that despite everything which had changed, I still could not see the path ahead.
I could not see coaching.
I could not see MICS.
I could not see Becoming.
I could not see the books or the work I now do.
I could not see how any of it would unfold.
What I could see was that it was time to go.
Many people assume we move forward because we can see where we are going. My experience was different.
The first time, I could not see the path and so I stayed.
The second time, I still could not see the path. The difference was that staying was no longer an option.
I did not have certainty. I did not have guarantees. In truth, I could not explain to anyone exactly what I was moving toward. I simply trusted what I knew, and it was making less and less sense to ignore it.
After leaving, I jokingly told family and friends that I was now a retired woman, and they would have to support me for a change.
I applied for jobs, but not very enthusiastically. During one interview, I told the panel that I did not really want the job. When they asked which job I wanted, I pointed to the Credit Manager and said, “Yours.”
A month later they offered me the position. I turned it down. It was not a bad opportunity. But by then, I knew it was not my path.
Slowly, it began to dawn on me that I was not looking for another organisation. I was being called to build something of my own.
Looking back, I realise I knew long before I understood. Some of the most important decisions in life arrive before the evidence.
We recognise something before we can explain it. We know something before we can prove it. We sense a direction before we can see the destination.
Perhaps choosing the unseen path is not about knowing where you are going. Perhaps it is about trusting what you already know when the path ahead has not yet revealed itself.
Reflect & Apply
1️⃣ Is there something you know to be true but have been unable to fully explain?
2️⃣ Where might you be waiting for certainty before taking a step you already know is necessary?
3️⃣ What would change if you trusted your knowing more than your need for guarantees?
📘 Be the Person You Dream of Becoming is available on Amazon, in RIK Bookstores nationwide or directly through me.
I help leaders develop the awareness, clarity, and confidence required to navigate uncertainty and make decisions aligned with who they are becoming.
Invest in developing leaders who can move forward even when the full path is not yet visible – and let their growth multiply your business success.
Remember, your success is my business.
Faithfully,
Monica Rogers-Fletcher
Listen to Choosing the Unseen Path