In the world of Physics, trajectory is used to describe the curve or path of travel for an object. In a perfect environment, take space or a vacuum (a controlled environment immune to any outside forces) for example, the object will remain perfectly on its path of trajectory, indefinitely. It will never alter unless it is subject to some sort of external force.

Think about that. If you throw a rock into space, and that rock does not come in contact with any debris, gravitational pull or atmospheric influences, its path of trajectory will continue forever in a predictable pattern. You could fast forward 17 Million years and with some not-so-simple math, figure out exactly where that rock would be. That is pretty amazing. So how does this translate to your life?

Think about the trajectory of your life at the moment. Think about the decisions you make each day and the habits that you possess. Are these decisions and habits the appropriate habits to get you to where you really want to be? Are you on the right path? Every decision, every habit and every action in your life, is trajectory-altering. You are currently the summation of all of your previous decisions, habits and actions. Good or bad.

This can help gives us a new perspective on how important our habits are. Everything we do has a result that is manifested in our life. We can use this principle to our advantage or to our detriment. It is our choice. When we recognize the trajectory of our life, and desire to improve it, we must make small decisions that align more closely with our goals. We must make minor adjustments. This is a constant and ever-evolving process. Goals change, therefore habits and actions must be adjusted.

Another important physics concept to understand is inertia. Inertia is an object’s resistance to a change in its current state of motion. All objects are resistant to motion. Just like people.

This is precisely why it feels challenging to make changes in your life. Inertia. We are resistant to moving in a different direction. It is much easier to remain on our current path. If we want more out of life, we must fight through the inertia and alter our trajectory. We also must recognize that each time we alter our trajectory, we are going to experience inertia. If we know this, we can be prepared for it. Making changes in your life is not easy, so do not expect it to be. Expect resistance. At the same time, use the resistance as an indicator that you are making positive changes in your life.

Matthew Harris