What If You Choose The Wrong Goal?
Coffee Thoughts are short reflections on life direction, self-improvement, growth, and loosely formed general ideas that are designed to make you think. Subscribe and receive a new one every Saturday, along with a blog every Wednesday!
People get caught up deciding what goal to pursue, they often go round in circles trying to figure out what to chase for the rest of their lives, and no wonder.
But the mistake that’s often made is believing that whatever decision is made is somehow final, with no way back.
The reality is, the goal you decide to chase is only a fraction of the decisions you’re going to make from that point onward.
A long-term goal broken down into its daily components is hundreds of tiny actions each day, and with each action comes a decision.
Do I get up now or do I snooze? Do I run now that I’m tired or just wait until later? Do I work this next hour or go to the beach? Do I go to sleep right now or watch just one more episode?
The goal you choose to pursue is just the beginning and sparks millions of seemingly insignificant decisions that ultimately determine your success.
This begs the question: Does that make the first decision more or less important? And to be honest, I think it’s both.
On one hand, if you choose wrong, then you’re probably going to continue choosing wrong each day.
If you’ve simply chosen something that makes you money or to prove people wrong, then you’re probably going to choose the easy route when things get hard. You’ll end up snoozing, going to the beach and watching one more episode.
On the other hand, though, these are still actions, and how you make the daily decisions becomes a guide that leads you closer to what you truly do want.
Two things can be true at once, and it all comes down to you.
If you’re unsure about what to do with your life, and have yet to come up with a good idea through thinking alone, then it’s simply time to act. If this is you, then whatever you choose is likely wrong, and that’s okay.
We find out what we want through experiencing what we don’t, and the only way to do that is through action.
However, given that our success rides so heavily on the quality of our daily decisions, and that the outcome of those decisions is determined by how much we care about the goal itself, it’s worth noting that the best sort of goal would be one you’re intrinsically motivated by.
Your choices are infinite, your preferences are subjective, and decisions, even the daily ones, are still only a fraction of what determines your success.
So, think less, do more, and keep aiming up!