I recently spent a week in my wife’s hometown with our kids helping my Mother-In-Law pack up her home of nearly 30 years. It was here that a new definition of courage and strength became apparent to me. To be honest, I’m writing this more for me than my readers as there aren’t too many connections to small business marketing. There are, however, valuable life lessons to take away.

How many times do we plan for that next step in life, map out a course to get there, and begin our journey in the direction we intend? Small business owners, employees, students, stay-at-home parents all map out courses on a daily, monthly, yearly, and lifetime basis. You read all the time about the courageous and daring small business owner who laughs in the face of adversity, changes directions for his venture, and wins despite all the challenges he or she faced. We all have goals and dreams, right?

But what happens when life takes it upon itself to write the script for that next step in our lives? What happens when your plans and dreams become a thing of the past and you’re handed a new journey – like it or not. What does that new journey hold? Where will it lead and why are you on it are just a couple questions that are a part of the new reality.

We packed boxes and helped my Mother-In-Law prepare to leave a house that isn’t about walls and bricks – it’s about memories, dreams, and loved ones. It’s about a course that was changed by life. Courage is finding strength when life presents you with a new course. Courage is starting the journey down that path not knowing exactly where it will lead.