Goals aren’t just wishful thinking or lofty aspirations; they’re roadmaps that guide us toward a desired future. Without goals, we risk drifting aimlessly, often finding ourselves moving in circles, caught up in routines that may not bring us fulfillment or meaning. Jim Rohn’s perspective on goals was that they are like the foundation of a house—without a solid foundation, anything we build is likely to crumble.
By setting goals, we shape our lives intentionally, taking charge of the direction we move in rather than being swept along by circumstances or other people’s expectations. Goals empower us to break down our dreams into actionable steps that propel us forward.
I have always been fond of learning new skills, very commonly it is about picking up a new instrument. Recently I started to learn saxophone, the reason is that I was inspired by a sax player. Came across one of his tunes on my playlist, and immediately wanted to try out playing the instrument. So I picked the sax up, did my first blow into it, and it was strenuous! I could barely make any sound, and if I did it would not sound as clear as I wanted it to be. Luckily my brother graduated from a music conservatory, taught me a few lessons and the sax actually came from him so I didn't have to buy one.
This is usually one of the occasions where I would try to pick up a skill, but eventually would drop it one day, getting discouraged for some reason. I would say there are factors like how I would confuse working towards a goal with having fun on what I'm doing. I found playing darts fun, even to this day. But I stopped practicing everyday when I started hitting a bunch of 180s (highest score possible which is difficult to consistently get). I would obviously continue to be playing everyday if my goal was to win tournaments, but I have much more important things to do and results won't just come overnight without practice.
It may be the opposite, where working towards a goal may not be that fun. I started running earlier this year, and I absolutely hate it. Although the hate got outweighed by the amount of positive things it gave to my overall well-being; hence, this is something that I still consistently do, at least twice or thrice a week.
Going back to the saxophone—I didn't necessarily set a goal even before starting to learn this instrument, knowing that I would only disappoint myself because I will suck at it for a very long time. But deep in my heart I would love to play like the greats, I want to be the next Charlie Parker. Or just become one of the greats. And it takes a lot of talent and effort, blood and tears to pull it off, which achieving it is definitely a delusional thing for me to do. It is discouraging sometimes if you try to compare your playing with other peoples' playing. But Jim Rohn covers this concern well with this quote:
The major value in life is not what you get.
The major value in life is what you become.
We are so obsessed with attaining what we want to get, but often forget how to be productive during the day. Setting a goal that will make you stretch that far is a combination of it being attainable and performing actions that push you further to become greater. For what it will make of you to achieve it. The goal is not to run a full marathon, but to show up to your running locations regularly. The goal is not about being the next Charlie Parker, but about being a sax player that practices every single day.
Setting goals is about creating a life that’s fulfilling and purposeful. Jim Rohn believed that happiness doesn’t come from drifting but from intentional living. Goals give us the chance to contribute, grow, and leave a positive impact on the world.
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