Of Sea Turtles And Distractions That Lead Us In The Wrong Direction

As I walked on the beach the other day, I noticed that certain areas were closed off by fences and signs that said “Sea Turtle Eggs”.

I remembered reading that female sea turtles swim to shore between May and August to dig nests in the sand and lay their eggs. Months later, the eggs hatch and the baby turtles follow the pure light of the moon back to the surf.

In a perfect world, the pure light of the moon guides every turtle back safely to the ocean. However, as we know, we don’t live in a perfect world.

Sea turtle hatchlings instinctively crawl toward the brightest light. On an undeveloped beach, the brightest light is the moon.

On a developed beach, the brightest light can be an artificial light source emanating from restaurants, homes and condominiums along the coast.

Unfortunately, these powerful artificial sources of light often attract the hatchlings and cause them to move in the wrong direction when they are born.

Rather than follow the pure light of the moon to the ocean, the sea turtles follow the wrong light to a disastrous outcome.

 
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Challenges in humans

It occurred to me that we humans face a similar challenge. Rather than follow the path we were meant to follow, unfortunately, we too often are distracted by things that move us in the wrong direction.

Technology, online games, too much time on Facebook, bad habits, addictions, stress, busyness and meaningless distractions lead us astray.

Instead of following the pure light of perfection, we allow bright and shiny artificial things to sabotage our journey.

So, what about you?

Questions to ask yourself

• Are you following your priorities and “pure light” to the right destination or are you allowing artificial distractions to lead you in the wrong direction?
• Are you following the path you were meant to follow or are you letting meaningless things keep you from being your best?

Concluding thoughts

The great news is that, unlike sea turtles, we have the ability to think, adapt and change direction when we realise we are following the wrong path.

We can tune out the distractions and focus on our priorities and let the pure light lead us to an ocean of possibilities and a great future.

Jon Gordon is the author of numerous books including The Energy Bus, The Carpenter and The Seed, and blogs regularly at www.JonGordon.com. What does this article mean to you? Share your thoughts at editor@leaderonomics.com. For more personal development insights, click here.

 
Reposted with permission on Leaderonomics.com