Direction Over Goals

I've been thinking a lot about the importance of direction in achieving goals. The key, I think, is to keep moving forward but with awareness of where you’re headed. Obsessing over achieving the goal might not be as helpful. For all you know, you could die before success, or best case—you'll die after it. Goals give us direction because without them, we feel stagnant and lost. It matters less if you run or walk there.

For me, my most primary direction is towards happiness. How I define my pursuit of happiness is less about getting there but more of a trend towards stability, wellbeing, peace, joy, home, presence. Many years ago when I was not so happy, I made it clear in my mind that nothing matters more. No success or achievement is going to be worth being miserable. And big picture—I’m going to die one day. So, eventually, success won't really matter. If happiness is there, none of the rest matters, and if it's not, none of the rest matters.

But hey, we are all also playing roles in society—and we get to choose the role we take on. We can even choose if we wish to change that role or explore new sides of ourselves and the world, and that's a beautiful thing that I’d hate to take for granted. I have secondary goals and ambitions that are there to guide my role, my work, my creativity, my play, but I hope I never to forget that it is play, or it ought to be.

How do you think about direction and your goals? Would love to hear your thoughts.

Be well and happy,

Naser