“The journey is the reward,” -Tao Expression
Like most people, you were probably raised to be more goal-oriented. With this mindset, you tend to focus on achievements and see the big picture. This kind of mindset helps us to get through school and on to college. It prepares us for the future and sets us on solid career paths toward what most people consider success. Being goal-focused isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Reaching goals is important, especially during those formative years. Goals are an important part of getting stuff done.
But what happens when we shift our attention to how we get to where we’re going? Does the journey hold just as much value as the goal? Here’s an even more radical thought. What if the goal itself is irrelevant?
Let’s explore the relationship between goals and how we go about achieving those goals. So, sit back and prepare to enjoy the ride. You’re about to set off on a journey like no other.
Setting Goals is Important
Before we dig into the journey, let’s talk about goals. Goals are important. They’re why we tend to get us up in the morning. They propel us forward and give the day a certain frame and function.
In fact, we use micro-goals every day. When we get hungry, we create a goal to have lunch. When we run out of clean clothes, we make another goal to do laundry. Additionally, we use bigger goals to give our lives direction. A goal for higher education leads us to college. A goal to get married points us toward a new relationship. Goals provide us with a wide range of benefits:
Goals Provide Direction- Whenever you want to go somewhere new, it’s a good idea to get a map or at least a set of directions to help show you the way. For this reason, we have apps on our phones and in our cars to give us step-by-step instructions, including where to turn and how far to travel on specific roads. Goals work much like those maps. They show you exactly where you’re going, which in turn defines the steps you need to get there—no more wandering about aimlessly. For example, say you know you want to be an accountant. This goal then defines the kind of school you need to attend and the course of study you pursue.
Goals Motivate You- Whenever you think about your goal, you probably feel a certain excitement about what you’re doing. This excitement will drive you to jump through whatever hoops you need to achieve your dreams.
Goals Boost Productivity- When you don’t have goals, you tend to drag on what you’re doing. Just ask anyone who has ever stocked shelves at the supermarket. The task can be mindless and even pointless if you take canned goods from boxes and shove them on the shelf. Oddly enough, the moment you turn this task into a goal, say emptying a pallet of boxes, you’ll find that you work a little faster, even make little competitions with yourself to see how long it takes. Goals always give us impetus, which leads to better productivity, with the bonus of more satisfaction in your work.
Goals Improve Self-Worth and Confidence- You can’t help but feel better about yourself whenever you achieve a goal. After all, you just did a thing! The very fact you did this thing also breeds confidence. You now know you’re capable of doing this particular thing. Go you! This is why runners measure the distances they run. While running can feel good, it’s even more amazing when you know you’ve hit a particular milestone, such as completing your first 5k.
Goals Allow You to Prioritize What’s Important- Sometimes, we get so bogged down by life we just don’t know which way to jump next. There’s nothing more confusing than a To-Do list where everything seems equally urgent. Knowing which tasks will push your goal forward helps you to determine which should probably be done first.
Goals Help You Make Decisions- Does everything you do push your goals forward? Probably not. We wind up with our days filled with clutter and busyness, most of it put there by someone else. The nice thing is you can quickly decide whether you should say yes or no to a new project by asking yourself one simple question: Does this request do anything to enhance my goal? If not, it’s a lot easier to decide to say no.
Goals Give You Control of Your Life- Without goals in life, you’ll find yourself easily caught up in the whims of other people. This approach can be fun if you like to go with the flow but annoying if you have dreams of your own. By turning your dreams into goals, you now have the power to take control of your situation. You’ll know what’s important and even how to prioritize what you wish to get done. In short, you’ll have full control of your life, with nothing happening which is not intended.
Goals Give You a Sense of Purpose- Without goals, your days can take on a certain sameness. Work is part of the same old routine. At home, you find your hours filled up with aimless pursuits. Goals change all this by giving you a framework for your life. You gain a sense of purpose as you work to make your dreams a reality. Life suddenly looks more interesting.
As you can see, goals are incredibly important to have. But are they how you want to measure your success? Do you want your life to be nothing more than the relentless pursuit of one goal after another?
What if goals, as important as they are, turned out to be irrelevant after all?
Read on to consider another option, which might be a little more interesting and a lot less exhausting.
The Journey is More Important
What if goals don’t matter? Can they be completely irrelevant even if they are important?
Goals might be what pushes us into motion, but when we start thinking our lives are all about the goal, we start losing sight of what’s important. Think about this:
There was a man who wanted to travel more than anything. He set his sights on a fabulous trip and was going to visit several countries. He collected maps and guidebooks. He spent hours planning this dream vacation meticulously. He read about the countries he wanted to visit, becoming familiar with the history and landmarks. He even spent time learning the language to be ready when he had the funds together to go.
Sadly, before he could make the trip, his heart gave out. He wound up in the hospital and eventually died without setting foot outside the country.
If you look at this man’s life from the perspective of someone only interested in the goal, you’d probably see this man’s life as a tragedy. He missed out. He never realized the goal and, in the end, never went anywhere at all.
Yet the man was happy in his life. He had his goal, but he also enjoyed preparing for his goal. He was delighted whenever he found a new book about the countries he wanted to visit. He made great friends while studying the language and culture of the places he wanted to visit. The hours he spent poring over maps enabled him to live the journey in his imagination. He was content. Why?
Because, in the end, the journey was more important than the destination.
