We do not have control of when we live, but we do have much control over where we live?

”Where?” may be one of the most important questions you will answer in your life.

Real Estate agents’ mantra has always been, “Location. Location. Location.”

This past week alone, I watched a nation, perhaps a globe, celebrate and agonize where an NBA sensation chose to spend the next chapter of his life. I learned of several friends and colleagues choosing new career paths in new locations. I traveled for hours and vacationed with my family in a location much warmer and exotic than where we choose to live and work.

Where really does matter!

Would Steve Jobs have had the same innovative influence if had lived in Kentucky?
Would Thomas Jefferson have written with such passion in Europe?
Would Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. have spoken with such eloquence and marched in the streets of Toronto?
Perhaps, but “where” was a muse and influence for so many who have made lasting contributions, accomplishments and impact.
Do you have a location that moves you to act? Create? Do?

Options are wealth!

The Wright Brothers built their plane in Ohio, but they took it to North Carolina for the wind.
The Beatles took their music to America to become Rock & Roll legends.
Having the ability to travel, visit or relocate is in itself a form of wealth, a form of education, and a form of inspiration. New locations can spur creative ideas, aid wisdom, and lessen woes.

The internet helps.

One could argure that ‘where’ matters less due to the internet, and there is a lot of truth to that. The internet equals the playing field for many entrepreneurs and creatives. Many actors and comedians today are being found on YouTube, who years earlier would have needed to make a pilgrimage to Hollywood or New York City. But… the internet is still a location. It is in fact a “where.” You need be there to be discovered.

For centuries America has been been known to the world as “The Land of Opportunity.” It is certainly one of the most important “wheres” in modern history. Will that ideal and trend continue? What is it about America that has made it such an incredible land of opportunity?

Are you ‘where’ you need to be?
Are you intentional about ‘where’ you are?
What makes a place a special place for creatives, learners, and doers?

Some doers of deeds simply made their “where.” They created their special place from an extra room. A spare bedroom becomes a studio or office. Their ‘where’ was a gallon of paint and a desk.

Location does not do it alone, though. How many others lived in those same areas, at the same time, and did little or nothing at all?

You not only control where you live, you also control what you do. You need both.

Perhaps the only move you need to make, is inside you.
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Kelly Croy is a speaker, author, and educator. Kelly’s book, Along Came a Leader, that delves deeper into six core leadership elements. •  Follow Kelly Croy on Facebook.   •   Follow Kelly Croy on Twitter.   •   Follow Kelly Croy on Instagram 

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