Why setting goals does matter.
Today I came across a blog post from a guy which I respect deeply. However, I disagree wholeheartedly with the content in the post.
The title says: “That Setting Yourself Goals is Practising Failure” and the entire post can be found here.
In summary, it states that setting yourself goals, is missing out on the dynamic nature of life, as it is constantly changing. By setting yourself one goal and succeeding in getting there and then just create another goal is pointless.
I disagree. And here’s my reasoning.
I see people go through life haphazardly all the time. If something good happens to them, they are happy, if not, they are unhappy. I dont want to be one of those people.
For me, the very act of not making up your mind on where you want to be, what you want to do and with whom you want to do it with is pointless. I dont want to live my life by mere chance. I want to influence my destiny toward something worthy. A worthy goal.
Some people only have a few overall goals in life. Getting married to the perfect person, having a nice home and perfect children might be some of those goals.
Others, like myself, make goals all the time. I feel a sense of fulfillment when im working toward a goal. I feel a sense of fulfillment when I accomplish the goal. The goals guide me towards what I value. Setting a goal like going out for dinner with my girlfriend twice a month, will put me on a path and journey thats important to me.
Its true that its the quality of the journey that’s important, not the stops on the way. However, the goals make me embark on this journey in the first place. Stopping every now and then to make sure you are still on the right path makes sense to me.
Goals change, just as your values in life change. A goal you set a week, month or year ago, might not be valid today. Think about your current values and set a goal that aligns with these values. For me, goals are not static Stop signs. They are markers along a highway called life, marking the places I want to visit during my stay here.
So while I agree with Mr. Ferro on almost all other technical points, this is a topic in which we must agree to disagree.