FINDING YOUR WAY - Discovering The Truth About You

by Dan Webster, Randy Gravitt

If you have ever wondered if you are on the right road in your own journey,
FINDING YOUR WAY is the tool you need. Through this emotional story, you
will see there is a piece of Mark Johnson in all of us. Unfortunately, many go
through life and never discover the truth about what they were born to do. The
same doesn’t have to be true for you.

In their Life Process Fiction debut, Dan Webster and Randy Gravitt give readers a path to discovery by reminding them to “Look” in the right places. This refreshing story and the FINDING YOUR WAY Process will become your personal roadmap toward living a life of integrity that leads to maximum impact.

106 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 31, 2012

Reviews

[Scott Wozniak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Teaching fables, like this book, use a story to teach a lesson. Most that I've read (and I love to read them) have a thin plot carried by rich teaching points. A few have a decent story, but the teaching isn't particularly special or original. The rarest find is a clever story with deep, rich ideas.

This book is one of the rare finds--a great story (subtle, fast-paced, and realistic) with great ideas behind it (easy to understand and potentially life changing).

Note: I'm an author of fables (2 so far) and have been a personal coach around life purpose for 12 years, so I have high standards. This is a phenomenal book for anyone looking to get clarity on which path to pursue.

The main character is college-aged, so it's easiest for similar-aged readers to relate and apply. But the ideas are rich enough that any age could have a breakthrough in the area of personal passions and purpose.

[Olivia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I understand the point behind this book. I understand what it was trying to say and can truly see the merit in the method is describes. That being said, its written with cringe-worthy dialogue and characters and moments that cheapen the message. Fable-like lessons have their place, certainly, but they require proper storytelling in order to be worthwhile. The point came across, so I guess it was a success, but I left more annoyed and exasperated than inspired.

[Donna Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish I had this when I was younger.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finding Your Way by Dan Webster and Randy Gravitt is a great book for self-discovery, although it's basic format and simple style lend itself more towards young adults and those who are unfamiliar with other works of guided self-discovery. The book is written in a novel format as opposed to a standard non-fiction format. The reader follows Mark, a college senior who is unsure of his finance major. After a nasty fight over the issue with his father at Christmas, Mark ends up meeting Jim Clark, the father of one of his friends, who offers to help him figure out his future. Mark and Jim meet up once a month from Christmas until graduation, and Mark is assigned homework each month. These "homework assignments" form the basis of the Finding Your Way system.

In a nutshell, there are four steps - Look Back, Look In, Look Up, and Look Out. Looking back involves an exploration into the past, examining the clues of the past for passions and strengths. Webster and Gravitt suggest speaking with those who knew you as a child and asking for their input, then making a list of strengths and ideas based on these conversations.

Looking in is an analysis of yourself using the clues of your experiences and reactions. This involves listing out past experiences, everything from jobs to classes, and teasing out what you liked and disliked about each. Again, it's suggested that once you compile this list, you share it with close friends and analyze their responses.

Looking up involves a respect and recognition of human value and possibly a recognition of the role of God or faith in the human journey. Webster and Gravitt suggesting asking parents to relate the story of your birth, followed by spending time reflecting on the value of human life and talking to those who seem to have a strong positive or faith-based outlook. The authors strongly suggest that each human being has unique gifts, and it is the responsibility of each person to discover and use those gifts.

Finally, looking out involves taking what has been learned in the prior steps to align the inner self with the outside world. The information that has been garnered hopefully suggests certain career paths that could be explored.

The story is fairly basic, providing little beyond a framework for the "Finding Your Way" process. Still, the story of Mike's father, George, provides a needed human element to the story. George is insistent that Mike finish his finance degree. This insistence hides the inner truth that George is unhappy and unsatisfied with his own life and with a career that doesn't align with his own strengths. By the end, George is supportive of his son and seeks to follow in his footsteps by exploring his own passions like his son.

Overall, there is little that is earth-shattering or even extremely original in this book. However, for the right audience, this book is perfect. I would suggest this strongly for any young adult nearing college who is reflecting on which paths to explore, or for someone looking for a simple process to begin a journey of self-exploration. If you've read other self-reflection books this probably isn't a good choice for you.

[Brad · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was blessed to graduate valedictorian of my high school class, earn several scholarships for academic excellence at Harvard, and serve in executive leadership at some of the most respected companies in the world. Yet I have always had an extremely difficult time figuring myself out -- what was I put on this earth to do? Through this life-changing book, I finally have a crystal-clear method and some easy-to-use tools for answering that question. If only I had been able to read this book with a mentor when I was entering high school so many years ago!