What happens to your brain when it has a deadline? Do you find yourself being more productive when you have a deadline? How about when you have a concrete goal? Do you find yourself more energized and focused? According to research, concrete goals (like make 20 free throws in a row) help people achieve more than abstract goals (like do your best). Our brain seeks to accomplish tasks and by giving your brain a target, it can better focus to achieve it. Clarity helps with high achievement.
I’m guessing this is something most people already know. However, how many people actually use it? It seems like most people used this in school due to assignments having concrete requirements and deadlines. And probably most people use this at work due to project deadlines. But how many people use this in their personal life? Do you use this in your personal life? What goals do you set for yourself when you wake up? I imagine for many people, it’s get through the day and make it to the weekend. Is that you? Are you okay with that?
The problem I see is that people are doing their best to get through the week to make it to the weekend. Then after the weekend is over, it’s back to getting back to the next weekend. The weeks fly by, then the months, and then slowly the year, and then before you realize it, a decade has passed and we wonder where all the time went and what was accomplished in that time. Was it worth it? If you got another chance to do it over again, would you do the exact same thing?
Life progresses whether we like it or not. Our lives get filled with people and things. We accumulate stability, friendships, and romance along with our share of pain and heartache. Every second of the journey was filled with something. But was it something you wanted? Is what you accumulated truly valuable to you? Did it feel like you did a great job instead of just getting through it? If your life seems to fly by without as much value as you wanted, you may have been running in autopilot, letting the current of life take you along a sleepy, quiet stream. If that’s what you want, congratulations! You did it! However, if that feels unsatisfactory, maybe it’s time to take control of your boat. Set a target and paddle your way into the stream of your choice.
For most people, they may not know their ideal target. That’s okay. In reality, our targets change quite a bit as we change.. We are going through a process of self-discovery and the more we know ourselves and the world, the better we can set our target. You don’t have to wait for life to show you who you are, you can set an intention to seek self-knowledge and overtake the natural learning curve and get a head start on experiencing the life that brings you your most fulfilling joy.
My recommendations:
- Discover your deepest beliefs
- Otherwise, discover your deepest values
- Otherwise, set an intention to learn something about yourself each week or even each day through conversations, meditation, prayer, reading, and dialogue.