Goal setting is important. Asking Insightful Questions helps. But goals alone aren’t enough. Research shows that life is better with rich experiences. These experiences happen when you create your journey. Alfred De Souza said it best when he said:
Happiness is a journey, not a destination. For a long time, it seemed to me that life was about to begin-real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way of something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid.
At last, it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life. This perspective has helped me to see there is no way to happiness. HAPPINESS IS THE WAY. So measure every moment you have and remember that time waits for no one.
How Does One Create Happiness?
You don’t. It’s not about being happy all the time. It’s about creating meaningful experiences. What’s one way to live a meaningful life? “Don’t set sucky goals.”*
Seriously. Stever Robbins* of the Get It Done Guy podcast says in this Fast Company article How To Set Goals For The Life You Actually Want that you should ask yourself these questions when setting goals:
- How do I want to spend my time?
- What daily activities make me want to leap out of bed?
- What do I want to learn?
- Who do I want to hang out with? Talk with? Collaborate with?
These questions open your life up to richer experiences because they focus on living.
4 Pillars Creating Meaning in Life
Still on convinced that goals should be set around creating a journey? Watch Emily Esfahani Smith’s Ted Talk below or listen to her interview on the Science of Success podcast discussing what her research says are the 4 pillars of creating a meaningful life. Pillars that include:
- A Sense of Belonging – Finding your tribe. My words.
- Purpose – Doing something worthwhile. I would go on to add that a pursuit that’s greater than oneself could add meaning.
- Transcendence – Becoming aware of something greater than self, like admiring a sunset, art, meditating, prayer, etc.
- Storytelling – The story you tell yourself about yourself can have a powerful impact on the experiences you have.
Takeaway
When crafting your goals, be sure to incorporate your best life into planning NOW instead of anticipating it to be somewhere in the future. Making changes that shift your life NOW by asking the tough questions like who do I want on my journey? What purpose is going to fuel my joy? What do I want to learn or INjoy that will leave me in awe?
