When You Have Goals You Don't Want

We inherit goals from our family. We adopt goals from our culture. We are taught goals by the previous generation. But what do we want our goals to be?

Most people living life don't know where they're going, and if they do they don't really know why. There's not a lot of direction these days. It's hard to find it, honestly. Life happens, and we try to keep our heads above water. For most people, thinking about what they want out of life is a privilege, almost a dream and goal in itself. But we need to think about these things or we will find ourselves floating along.

We've been given life, and we shouldn't live it halfway. I don't mean we should throw away responsibilities and go dream chasing or adventure hopping. That's not practical. What I do mean is that each life holds incredible potential, especially in today's world. The world is at our fingertips. All information ever know to anyone from any culture in any place on this planet is accessible to us in some form thanks to the internet. It's a shame to not follow our dreams.

I often find myself on autopilot. It's easy. I work a lot, I get tired, I let the routine kind of run itself and I just show up. We have to be intentional or we'll miss it. Our whole life will pass by and maybe it will have been a full one, but for most of us, it could have been fuller.

So what are your goals? Are they goals that you want or are they goals someone handed to you somewhere along the way? Are they the goals people your age and in your culture are 'supposed' to have or are they the ones you want to see played out in your life? It's never too late to start pursuing them. I think a good measure for if a goal is worth pursuing or not is to ask 'If I pursue this goal for the rest of my life and never attain it, will it still be worth it?' Enjoy the process, enjoy the learning that comes with each step. Make a list. Push yourself. Live life.

What are some goals you have been pursuing that you didn't really choose but were given to you in one way or another? What are some goals you want to start working towards?