When I was a kid my dad took me bird hunting.
I was pretty excited. Buying the gear was exciting.
Driving to the small motel in the small town was exciting.
Getting up super early and eating breakfast in the 24H diner was exciting.
Driving out to the field to hunt was exciting.
The actual hunting part?
Pretty boring.
We all spread out across a big field.
And then waited.
Despite all our preparation, the most important part of bird hunting is being patient.
If the birds don’t come, you have nothing to shoot at.
All that preparation, excitement, buildup for a pretty lame payoff.
I remember once commenting to my friend after a HUGE dinner party.
She’d spent a couple weeks preparing, worrying, looking up recipes.
But the actual eating part was over in about an hour.
Lots of preparation, but BOOM! It was over.
A lot of things are like this.
Problems develop when you expect the payoff to be TOO BIG and monumental.
As if it’s going to change everything.
When in reality, it’s the preparation, the building that is the best part.
This is why having HUGE goals WAY out there is better than ONLY having a couple of short term ones.
Many people fall into the trap of thinking they “only” need that one “thing” and then FINALLY, everything will somehow “click” into place.
Unfortunately, when (or if) it does “click” into place, it’s only for a little bit.
And if you somehow convince yourself that getting that “thing” is going to solve your problems FOR GOOD, then you might have a lot of “post success letdown.”
Olympic athletes that win gold medals, championship sports teams, even soldiers returning from war or active duty experience this.
They focus on that BIG GOAL so much, that when it happens, they don’t know what to do. Because they’ve focused on that BIG GOAL so much, they didn’t notice that increase in energy, focus, intensity and all other things that are necessary for a fulfilling life along the way.
And when that BIG GOAL is achieved, all that energy that got them there is GONE.
It’s very easy to feel empty after that.
So at the very least, you’ve got have another goal in your back pocket ready to go when that goal in front of you is realized.
OR, make sure to create a MASSIVE ONE that is literally bigger than life.
Bigger than YOUR life.
That way, you’ll always have forward drive, forward momentum, and all of the other good stuff that makes life worth living.
Most people don’t have goals. And those that do tend to have goals that they didn’t choose, but were given to them by others.
It’s your life, and your choice.
Build it YOUR way.
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