Many of us spend our time looking for something…motivation, validation, our mission. If you are still looking, but not finding what you seek, maybe you are looking in the wrong place.

A famous apocryphal story is that bank robber Willie Sutton was asked by reporter Mitch Ohnstad why he robbed banks. According to Ohnstad, Sutton replied, “Because that’s where the money is.” Whether or not Willie Sutton really said that, the comment is full of wisdom.

Another relevant bit of wisdom comes from this story. A policeman sees a drunk man searching for something under a streetlight and asks what the drunk has lost. He says he lost his keys and they both look under the streetlight together. After a few minutes the policeman asks if he is sure he lost them here, and the drunk replies, “No, I lost them in the park.” The policeman asks why he is searching here, and the drunk replies, “This is where the light is”.

If you want to find something, it pays to look where it is. Are you looking in the right place or where it is easy to look?