Have you ever noticed that it always seems to take longer going somewhere than it does coming back?

It doesn't matter if we're walking or driving or taking a plane; I have never had the experience where it seemed to take longer on the way back, and I'm pretty confident in betting that your experiences have been the same.

Is it anticipation on the way to a destination that seems to make it take longer?  That factor that prompts kids to repeatedly ask, “Are we there yet?” when on a travel vacation?

Or is it the grand-daddy of all fears; the fear that is at the basis of almost every fear known to man; the fear of the unknown?

The fear of the unknown is really why we think we're afraid of success.  It's also why we're afraid of failure, rejection, the dark, heights, public speaking, and yes, death.  Think about it. When somebody asks you why you're afraid of something, chances are you're going to answer, “because I don't know what's going to happen if...”

Similarly, when you're going somewhere you've never been before, you “don't know what's going to happen if...” which could conceivably make it seem longer than coming back from that destination, where you know exactly what's in store for you.

Recently Barry and I went hiking along the cliffs on the side of the Rogue River in Southern Oregon.  The 2-mile trail took us up and down craggy rocks and through the woods to the famous Rainee Falls, which was supposed to be a beautiful payoff to a gorgeous hike (in fact the hike was more impressive than the falls, which only illustrates to me the metaphor that success – and life – is a journey, not a destination).

We had both noticed this phenomenon that the way back always seems shorter than the way there, wherever “there” happens to be, so I timed us both ways.

The hike to the falls took an hour, and then we hung out by the water watching a hawk hunt as salmon worked their way upstream, followed by a picnic on a little beach.  It was a bit of a gruelling hike because of the uneven turf and the twisting narrow trails. 

The break when we got there allowed us to recharge our batteries a little bit, but not to the point of being as fresh as when we started.

On the way back, some bodily aches and pains were setting in for both of us, which would have been expected to slow us down, not only in reality, but should have definitely made the journey seem longer as well.  But true to form, it seemed to take only half as long.

In actual time, it took us 10 minutes less – only 50 minutes to get back, even though we were stopping to rest just as often as on the way in, and not as physically up to par as we had been.  But the perspective was that it took a lot less time.

As we walked, connecting with nature and each other on a spiritual level, I asked the Universe to fill me on what this phenomenon was all about.

Sort of like “meditation in motion”. (Yes, even though I understand that we can accomplish more by focusing on one thing, I tend to be a multi-tasker... one of my few vices if you want to call it that).

And as I walked, my mind filled with visualized imagery juxtaposed with the beautiful and awe-inspiring real-life scenery.  Those visions formed an answer to my question, and the answer that I got was, coupled with the fear of the unknown, it's about the Law of Perspective.

The first thing to understand is that, even though I'm referring to the “fear” of the unknown, it doesn't necessarily appear to us as a fear per se.  When you're going on vacation to the Caribbean, you're not likely to feel like you're afraid of what you'll find there; but you will feel anticipation, nervousness, and perhaps butterflies in your stomach, which you'll interpret as excitement but are, in fact, the same symptoms as fear.

As an artist, I learned that the Law of Perspective is about the way we perceive space.  In real life, it's about how we perceive space, time, energy, money, and every other resource you can think of.

So on our little journey, we perceived space as getting smaller as we connected with the “known” entity of a path we'd been on before.  And we perceived time as getting shorter in conjunction with the smaller space. 

We also perceived the energy required to take us home as being less than what was required to take us on the outward adventure, because on the way out we had to conserve what energy we had in case it got used up too soon; but on the way back we knew how much it would take. 

And along with more perspiration came more inspiration; or, while our bodies got more tired, our souls got more inspired.  And inspired entities always experience the phenomenon of “time flying”; which of course is, again, the Law of Perspective at work.

One teacher I interviewed said that if you can be in that reality-shifting “time flying” mentality as often as possible, you'll be able to manifest what you want more consistently. 

The reason for this is that the Law of Perspective works hand in hand with powerful emotions like gratitude; so as you're perceiving that time is flying because you're having fun, and you're not experiencing the fear of the unknown but loving the certainty that is, you're more likely to be grateful for the reality that is yours.

And as you become more grateful for what is, you attract more of what you want. Just like as you're heading home, not experiencing fear of the unknown but feeling gratitude for your approaching sanctuary, you attract a “faster” trip (by perspective).

In fact, this phenomenon illustrates itself; because it was the feeling of gratitude, which came from the connected inspiration I was receiving from nature, that allowed me to tap into the Universal Consciousness and get the answer to the question I wondered about, just as I was experiencing “time flying”. 

It was a circular relationship of inspiration > gratitude > perspective > inspiration > gratitude and so forth. 

So perspective (on what I had, what I was experiencing, and what I could be grateful for) taught me about perspective itself.

Now that I understand more about how fear and gratitude work in opposition to one another, I believe it's possible to lessen the difference between two legs of a trip by applying more gratitude (and hence less fear or apprehension) on the way out.

Why should we be distracted from the beauty of the journey by worrying about what hasn't happened... or what we haven't yet seen or experienced?  I always say that worry is the stupidest feeling around, because it doesn't stop what we're worried about from happening, and in fact might make it happen because of the energy we're putting into it.

So why not just enjoy and be grateful for the journey into the unknown, for the adventure it brings us?  This applies to life as a whole as well; since life is truly a journey, not a destination, wouldn't we be able to enjoy it more by being grateful, inspired, and not scared?

As I enter a new phase of my life, I'm making a personal commitment to let go of control a little bit and be more grateful for everything that comes my way, as unexpected as it may be. And interestingly enough, as I let go of my fear of the unexpected, the outcome always becomes more expected... and manifests exactly the way I wanted it to.

Heather Vale is the creator and host of the online Talk shows, Success Unwrapped and Internet Marketing Unwrapped, the author of Today’s Success Minute and a co-author of the book Success and Happiness. She is also known as the Dana Scully of Success, where with her partner, Barry Goss (the Fox Mulder of Manifestation), she uncovers the secrets of top manifestation mentors. Their discoveries are available at Masters of the Secret