Why Life Is a Series of Dots, Not a Line
How to Break Free from the Past and Choose Your Next Step with Intention
We like to believe life follows a predictable path. That it’s linear. Straightforward. Cause → effect. What happened yesterday will shape what happens tomorrow.
It’s comforting… until it’s not.
Because that same belief can trap us.
“I failed at my last job, so I’ll probably fail again.”
“I’ve always struggled with relationships, so that’s just who I am.”
You're not alone if you’ve ever told yourself something like that.
But here’s the shift that changed the way I think about it:
Life isn’t a line. It’s a series of dots.
That’s the idea Alfred Adler shares — and what the book The Courage to Be Disliked brings to life.
Each moment is a dot.
Each dot is independent.
And at any moment, you can change direction.
Let’s bring it down to earth.
Imagine you launched a business that didn’t work out.
If you think life is a line, you say:
“I failed. I’m not meant for this.”
But if you see it as dots, you say:
“That was one dot. It doesn’t decide the next one.”
One moment doesn’t define the whole picture.
You do — with the next choice you make.
Here’s why this matters:
It frees you from being defined by your past.
It reminds you that change is always on the table.
It puts the power back in your hands.
Adler says, “Your past may explain the present, but it does not determine the future.”
That’s worth reading twice.
📌 A question to carry with you this week:
Are you living as if your past defines you?
Or are you choosing your next dot freely?
You don’t need to rewrite your story overnight.
You need to choose the next dot with intention.
One moment. One choice. That’s all it takes.