Many years ago, I somehow found myself watching the Super Bowl, and it made me think about goals.
I saw clearly how the players hungered for the goal of winning. But I also understood that in order to reach their goal, they had to almost forget it, being fully present in the moment and bringing all their skills and training to the play that was happening now.
In fact, the more the players were present, the more efficient and effective their actions would be. Too much focus on the goal would distract them from the task at hand. But having the goal in mind also brought power and drive to these actions.
What is a goal? It’s an idea, a product of our imagination, a fantasy about something that we want in the future. And part of envisioning a goal is imagining the good feeling we’ll have when we attain it.
How do goals affect our present moment experience?
- They create an intention or desire that infuses our actions;
- They help us focus and clear distractions from our path;
- They may create inner friction if we simultaneously want the goal, or feel like we should accomplish it, but resist the actions to get there—what we commonly call procrastination.
In many ways, our busy lives in our must-do, be-successful modern life are ruled by goals. We start with a desire—for money, security, accomplishment, happiness, or awakening. We set our sights on the goal, then take actions in the moment that will help us achieve the outcome we want.
The goal itself isn’t present now, but the sense of desire or determination is.
Goals serve all kinds of purposes, and they are integral to our daily lives. I want to go meet a friend, so I put the address in my GPS and drive there. I envision the dinner I want to make, then take the actions to prepare it. I want to publish this article on Friday, so I sit down to write it.
Goals provide structure and support us in being functional in our lives.
And some goals—the holy ones, the dreams that keep tapping us on the shoulder—are like prayers or visions that draw us into our right path. They arise from our hearts and the spaciousness beyond our minds and serve as a guiding force that keeps us on our true path.
What role do goals play in your life?
And there are other things to consider.
If goals are the dominating force in our lives, we set ourselves up for stress. Always oriented toward what we don’t have or what isn’t currently present, we’re lost in a sense of lack and inadequacy that motivates us to keep trying. Some of us are constantly pushing ourselves to get what we don’t have.
Before we know it, we’re the hamster on the wheel—blindly trying to get somewhere while we feel anxious and dissatisfied now. We forget to enjoy life.
Then there’s the element of attachment. If our inner contentment is attached to attaining the goal, we’re in trouble. We end up missing out on the precious moments of our lives happening right now because we’re so focused on the future.
And what if life throws us a curve that prevents us from accomplishing the goal? Have you heard the joke asking, “How do you make God laugh?” Make plans.
Even though you—the personal and separate self who wants to be in control—might set a goal, make a plan, or desperately want something in the future, there’s a greater force at play. Life brings you what it brings you.
How do you receive what you get?
We can be so focused on goals that we miss our present moment reality. We miss the awe of what’s here right now, the amazing diversity of life that is bursting at the seams in every moment. We miss opportunities for joy, connection, wonder, and love. We miss the juicy, messy, stunning magnificence of This!
I’m sitting here with the goal of finishing this article, and I stop periodically to take a breath and reconnect with the expansiveness of presence.
Maybe we can infuse “getting there” with being here. Maybe we can hold goals lightly, wanting them but not being attached, appreciating the process instead of charging ahead.
Maybe what we truly want is not the goal we imagine in our minds, but the feeling we think we’ll have when we get it. And maybe that feeling is already here, unnoticed.
When we get quiet and tune into the pulse of life, we find, quite naturally, that our hearts sing and our spirits soar. Isn't that what we all want?