72 | Sometimes a Map is More Helpful Than a GPS

The Gentle Rebel Podcast

I used to end each year by following a course that helped me set goals for the next twelve months. However, by the end of 2020, it stopped working for me. The image of goals as destinations in a GPS felt alien and inhuman. This was when I began using maps to reframe my energy and desire for change in a less linear, start-with-the-end-in-mind way.

In this episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, I build on what we explored last time and look at how seeing life laid out on maps can be much more meaningful than thinking of it as little more than a linear experience.

The Map From The Atlas of Experience by Louise van Swaaij and Jean Klare

The GPS is Efficient and (Generally) Accurate

In contrast to GPS systems, maps stand out because they don’t dictate anything. Instead, they invite you to explore the many possibilities and make decisions based on what matters to you. You become part of the process rather than a passive follower. A GPS, on the other hand, narrows down your choices to one: the fastest, most efficient route. It thinks and chooses for you.

A GPS might give you the option to avoid highways or toll roads, but you don’t get much more input than that. And during the journey, you might not notice the places you’re passing or where the route is taking you. A map, however, reveals more depth and detail, and you get to see where you’ll be going and decide if there are any appealing detours along the way.

I’m not suggesting we abandon modern technology to plan journeys (I am VERY grateful for it). But when it comes to metaphors for life, are we aiming to cut down journey time and get to the destination as quickly as possible? Or is there more value in taking the slower, more intentional route?

In this episode, I explore what we lose with a GPS mindset and what we gain by using a map to guide our personal growth and life planning.

The Playful Spirit of Exploration

There’s a close connection between this map metaphor and the concept of play. Playfulness isn’t driven by purpose or outcomes. It thrives on unpredictability, spontaneity, and curiosity. It doesn’t ask for a reason beyond “Just because.” When we approach life in this playful way, we can follow what feels right, move with curiosity, and trust the flow of things.

But this approach can be abruptly interrupted when viewed through a GPS lens, where the questions are:

• What’s the point of doing that?
• Does this have a purpose?
• Is this going to be relevant for the exam?

The GPS mindset is purpose-driven, always seeking usefulness and efficiency. It doesn’t always understand or appreciate the value of play. Even if it recognises the value of what we’re doing, it often critiques how we’re doing it, pushing speed and efficiency as the highest measures of worth.

This voice says, “Don’t do it like that. It’s quicker this way. Trust me, you’ll save time.”

Many of us have experienced frustration when someone offers unsolicited advice on being more efficient and doing things quicker. It’s not always the advice that irritates, but rather the implicit value system, which comes across as a universally applicable truth: speed = good.

This highlights a clash in values, revealing that what matters to us may be less about efficiency and more about presence, quality, or the joy of the process itself.

What Do We Lose With The GPS Mindset?

Many goal-setting systems use the GPS metaphor, which can be helpful, but it’s worth examining what we lose when prioritising efficiency and speed above all else. The GPS mindset encourages growth that’s bigger, faster, and stronger. But why do we internalise this as the only way? Why should we grow as big as possible, as quickly as possible?

When we adopt these values without question, we often lose sight of the heart of things—the core reasons why something mattered to us in the first place. This is why so many companies and services decline in quality as they scale. As we move up and to the right on the linear growth chart, we drift away from the foundational values that made something special to begin with.

Contrast this with the map approach, which allows for winding paths and cornerstones that keep us connected to our core values. Growth doesn’t have to be a straight line. It can be circular, organic, and full of twists and turns that reflect the richness of the experience.

Maps and Folded Page Moments

This idea of a non-linear journey is closely linked to how we experience time. Moments through time often fit better on a map than on a timeline. Think about those moments when you haven’t been somewhere or seen someone for years, and then when you return, it feels like no time has passed at all. I call these “folded page moments”—two points on the timeline fold together as if the time between them is irrelevant.

This happens with activities too, like hobbies we enjoyed long ago. When tied to a linear understanding of time, the gap between “then” and “now” can feel too wide to return to those old passions. But when we see time mapped out like an island, it becomes easier to return and pick up where we left off. A map shows how elements connect and interweave, whereas a GPS takes us through the terrain, filtering out irrelevant details and leaving us without a sense of where we fit in the bigger picture.

Anchoring To The World Outside The Window

I was reminded of this difference between a GPS and map mentality by the tweet I mentioned last time:

“There’s a woman on my Edinburgh to London train just doing the journey raw. No book, no laptop, no music. She scrolls her phone for a few minutes every hour or so, but otherwise just looks out the window. Incredibly powerful and kind of terrifying.”

This speaks to the heart of what I love about maps. Looking out the window on a train, we’re grounded in the world we’re passing through. Even though it’s just a glimpse—only the part of the world next to the tracks—we see where we are. We’re present. But when we keep our heads in our phones, we might feel disconnected, floating through space, disembodied.

Looking out the window while travelling can help me feel anchored in space and time. It helps me connect with where I am in this moment. I don’t want to get there faster—I want to feel grounded in the world as I pass through it. I want a spirit of adventure and connection, not efficiency and productivity.

Mapping The Journey

In this spirit of slowness and reconnection, I imagined my life as an island and my goals or desires for change as seeds of treasure planted around it. Instead of climbing the ladder of productivity and chasing linear growth, I began to view life through this lens as an island where desires, hopes, and dreams grow from the inside out rather than being rungs on a ladder to strive up.

A movie night in The Haven at the end of that year further influenced this adventure when we watched Hook. I was reminded how much I love treasure islands and the endless possibilities of enchanted forests, lagoons, canyon rope bridges, and treehouses. These magical landscapes and maps swirled through my mind as I reimagined my goal-setting process in a completely new way.

The Atlas of Experience

After the initial launch of The Return to Serenity Island, I discovered The Atlas of Experience by Louise Van Swaaij and Jean Klare. This book presents human experiences as a topographical elements on a series of maps, with places like the Isles of Forgetfulness, Boredom, Streams of Consciousness, and many other symbolic landmarks.

It was powerful to see the landscapes of everyday human experiences, feelings, and situations represented this way. I also enjoyed how the book is an invitation rather than a blueprint, inviting exploration without dictating a path.

Returning To Serenity Island

These ideas and approaches form the foundation of The Return to Serenity Island, an immersive coaching experience designed to help you reconnect with what drives you. It’s about breaking free from the linear narratives we’ve absorbed and embracing a playful, imaginative approach to exploring who we are in all our beautiful complexity.

This course invites you to chart your life on maps, define the shifts that matter most, and partner with your creative spirit. If you’re in a season of change or feel the call of adventure whispering to you, I invite you to join me on this journey. It’s a chance to explore how and why you want to do what matters to you and release the pressure to perform.

https://youtu.be/R-eXD8d_8yI