This One Question Will Help Determine if You’re on the Right Track in Life

Some people who hear the words "self-improvement" instantly groan, but others have embraced it as an entire lifestyle. For example,  Brianna Wiest , the bestselling author of The Mountain Is You: Transforming Self-Sabotage Into Self-Mastery and The Pivot Year: 365 Days to Become the Person You Truly Want to Be , has been passionate about personal growth and self-empowerment for over 15 years.

With her latest release, The Life That's Waiting (Feb. 26), Wiest was able to return to the very first idea she ever had for a book. 

"I remember being in my late teens and struggling with all kinds of things that people do around that time of their lives, and thinking to myself – I wish there were a book out there that was like an encyclopedia of feelings ," she tells Parade .  " I later came across the sage wisdom that 'the book you want to read is the book you're meant to write,' but it would take me a decade and a half to figure out exactly how to do that." 

The Life That's Waiting is a "heartfelt guide for anyone at life's crossroads, offering readers a roadmap back to clarity, peace, and purpose." After all, Wiest knows it's so easy to feel stuck in life, but she wants to remind readers (and her million Instagram followers ) that they're not alone.

So, if you're feeling lost or overwhelmed, don't worry—we've all been there too. Here's the one question to ask yourself that will help determine if you're on the correct path, and why it's important to take the right steps toward the future you want.

Related:  'I've Been Into Self-Improvement for Over 15 Years and This Is the #1 Thing That's Transformed My Growth Journey the Most'

Brianna Wiest on the One Question That Will Help Determine if You're on the Right Track in Life

Wiest explains, "If you could imagine looking back at this point of your life when you're 90 years old, if you are so fortunate to be able to get there, what would you regret not having done?"

Then, try to find a way to make that thing happen. After all, whether it's in your career, relationship or community, if you're feeling unfulfilled, it can lead to long-term unhappiness.

"When you settle for something on the outside, you spend the rest of your life feeling mildly unsettled on the inside," she tells Parade . "No matter how much you try to weave justifications around it, convince yourself it is right, if it isn't sitting plainly with you at your core, and no amount of time or effort can get it there, it means there's a greater experience available to you, and waiting for you."

And looking at what the people are doing around you won't help you with this predicament.

"It's not just about having some kind of external measure of success, either," Wiest shares. "It's really about you putting yourself in the way of a life that will actually help you grow, and evolve, and become yourself."

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Source

Brianna Wiest is the author of the books 101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think, The Mountain Is You , The Pivot Year , The Life That's Waiting and more.

Her books have sold millions of copies, regularly appear on global bestseller lists, and are currently being translated into 40+ languages.

She has a B.A. in English and an Honorary Doctorate in Literature, both from Elizabethtown College.