Why set goals?..................

I was talking to my sister on the phone the other day, and we were being VERY negative. Do you ever do that, just to blow off steam? Sometimes, when I am feeling crabby, I will see how verbally negative I can be. I don't know why this makes me feel better, but somehow it does.

As I was saying, we were being negative and I remember saying, "Why bother to reach a goal, because when you do all that is left is to set another one and you are right back to where you started. If you never reach a goal, then you never have to think up a new one." If I remember correctly this was said in the context of playing some dumb computer game, but what if that was how I really felt about life? What would be the point?

While I might not be a totally goal oriented person, I do know that if I coast through life for too long a period I begin to feel unsatified, begin to long for something to strive for. Having a goal helps me to stay focused and makes me feel like there is purpose to my days/life. It doesn't really matter the size of the goal, just that I have something that I am working towards.

Where I fall down is really what I was saying with the above negative statement. When I reach a goal, I don't take time to savor the victory. Somehow I jump right to "if I could reach this goal, then it must not be that big of a deal so I had better get moving onto the next goal," missing out on the enjoyment of my success. Granted, there is the possibility of spending so much time savoring a victory that one doesn't ever move on to discover new adventures. Like everything else in life, the secret is in finding the balance instead of being black or white as is my tendency.

So this might be a good new goal for me as the year progresses. Learn to savor; the moment, the goal,the victory, the pleasure. Take time to stop and not only smell but enjoy the beauty of the roses and all the other wonders that our world has to offer. I might just discover something I have been missing. Wouldn't that be cool?