Goals - Issue 10 - 22nd May 2022
You may be thinking: “it’s all very well that all of these ancient philosophers and gurus want us to embrace struggle, but struggle is hard and depressing so why would I subject myself to that? Life should be about being happy and content.” However, how do you expect to be happy and content if you don’t get anything done, if you don’t fill your life with accomplishment and pride? You may happy and content binge-watching TV and eating junk for food now, but truly ask yourself: Will I be this happy and content when I’m looking back on this life if I didn’t achieve anything of value expect for getting to theend of Game of Thrones? I hope the answer is no. Additionally, embracing productive struggle doesn’t have to be depressing. In fact, if carried out correctly, it can be the opposite: life-affirming and inspirational.
First, lets define the word productive. Productive is the performing of a task that moves you towards some end goal. This end goal could be in the near future. For example, making the bed is productive as it directly correlates with the goal of starting your day productively, yearning for a clean and tidy room and making the end of your day more pleasurable. The end goal could also be further in the future. For example, writing the words you’re reading now is productive as it directly correlates with meaning and purpose for me and hopefully for you. The end goal could be decades in the future. For example, exercising and eating healthily now is productive as it directly correlates with the goal of being healthy, fit and capable in old age as well as prolonging your time without disease and illness for as long as possible. These are all productive uses of our time, so in order to be productive, goals must be established.
In order for struggle to be productive, it must first have a direction and a destination, otherwise, the strugglemay not be productive and a hindrance rather than a path towards fulfilment
What are goals ? The word goal is a term that is thrown around between people who have read one too many “inspirational” quotes. The type of people with “Live, Laugh, Love” sprawled across their living room wall. I don’t believe there should be a strict definition for the word ‘goal’ as it’s an extremely relative term and should be utilised in any way that allows an individual to accomplish something. So I’ll just say that a goal is a change you want to see, broadly as in the world or narrowly as in yourself as an individual. For our purposes, that change must be something productive, healthy and positive as it is possible to want change in the form of making theworld worse like history’s arsehole Adolf. So now that I’ve defined goals…sort of, let’s discuss how to formulate one. For some people, just the utterance of the word makes their butt cheeks clench, however they needn’t clench. I’m not asking you to think about a dream that you have like fame, fortune or a Lamborghini and just wish it and think about it everyday so that it will come true. People that recommend this strategy for achieving goals are charlatans. I’m also not asking you to write down your goals, stick to them no matter what, read them every morning and night and tell the whole world about them on social media, however if this helps you accomplish them, then be my guest, just know that you will lose followers if you choose this path.
I realise that for some people, setting goals by writing them down in a very organised manner and rigidly sticking to them is not helpful. I’m included in this camp with some of my goals. I like broader career goals to be fluid and ever-changing because rigidly sticking to specific goals no matter what closes doors and opportunities that perhaps might not have been considered. However, everyone should have, at least, a direction in mind. For example, ‘I want to be a published writer’ is a loose goal as it doesn’t restrict what thecontent of the work has to be, the length of the work or the timeframe. It’s just a general direction that I am following in order to reach an end goal. I know, with this direction, how to be productive. I must carry out tasks that correlate to this direction whether that be writing these words, researching ideas or reading former philosophers and thinkers who believed similar beliefs to me. However, there are some goals that may fair better if they are rigid and structured. For example, “I want to run 5km in under twenty four minutes by October.” This has a specified time-frame and a specified end result which gives me a narrower line for pursuing this goal which means I can align my struggle with the end result, meaning I must be making progress on this goal. I must be running a certain number of days a week and I probably should stop smoking so much. For goals, it all comes down to:
1) The individual – what type of goal motivates you? – loose and broad or structured and rigid.
2) The goals itself – will the goal be more likely to be achieved with a broad or structured path?
In order for struggle to be productive, it must first have a direction and a destination, otherwise, the struggle may not be productive and a hindrance rather than a path towards fulfilment.
Keep On Struggling,
Gregor
Protein Bars I Love - Misfits
I came across these a few months ago and am so happy that I did. These suckers pack up to 16 grams of protein with less than 1 gram of sugar! They’re vegan friendly and gluten free and they taste unbelievable. I cannot believe how good they taste with that little sugar. I have these on my healthy days after lunch to give my self a quick energy boost and a decent dose of protein.
Pick these up below.
Podcast/Lecture I’m Listening To Again - Jordan Peterson’s Reality & The Sacred
I listened to this lecture years ago and it completely transformed my view on religion. Before, I viewed religion only in negative terms as I believed it was the cause of wars, it causes people to treat other groups of humans at best with disdain and at worst with physical abuse or murder and that it was an intellectual failing to believe that there is a God or multiple. I still do believe these points but after listening to this lecture, I have a new found respect for religions and some of their morals. I also appreciate now the significance of religions and how they are the basis and foundation of all human knowledge. The stories within religion, as long as they’re not taken to be true, hold monumental truths about life and nature and this lecture is an effective examination of this so I would recommend listening to the whole lecture but if you only have time for a few minutes, I’d start at the twenty minute mark.
Watch Below.
Stand-Up Special I Just Re-Watched - Humanity by Ricky Gervais
I’ve watched this before and I love it. I disagree with some of what Gervais says but I whole-heartedly agree with his view on free speech and cancel-culture. He is, to me, an effective advocate for the retaining of freedom of speech and for cancelling cancel-culture as he is a free thinker, who says what he believes without regard for party politics or tribal culture. Within thecontroversial jokes and quips, there is deeper points regarding comedy, offence and what should be considered when walking that thin line between comedy and offence.
His monologue when hosting the Golden Globes is also worth watching as he did not discriminate against anyone, in that he discriminated against everyone.
He also has a new Netflix special out on 23rd May.
Watch Humanity Below.