I’m a senior, and I don’t have one single goal. As graduation is next month, this may be surprising to hear; but let me put it like this: you only have one life. Not in the YOLO (you only live once,) sort of way, but in the actual, you really only have one life so make it count, sort of way.
The Social Security Administration reports that the average life expectancy for a male living in the U.S. is 84 years and for a woman, 86. To me, 86 years sounds like a very long time to be working toward one goal; and to be frank, it sounds quite boring.
As the average life expectancy continues to increase each year, so should the number of goals we set for ourselves. Setting multiple goals provides a sense of self-worth, confidence, humbleness, ambition, self-control and perseverance, just to name a few.
My personal goals range everywhere from tiny, daily victories to seemingly impossible goals that can only be accomplished with help from a higher power. As the only person who lives 100 percent of your life, only you can decide what your goals should be. Set goals, decide to see them out and then start a new set of goals.
A common phrase amongst others my age is, “I can’t go to school because I don’t know what I want to do yet.” That’s OK! Life started years ago, just pick something and get going. Your life doesn’t stop just because you haven’t decided on a forever career yet; time isn’t waiting for you.
Fifty years ago when most things were black, white and blue collared, men picked one job and held it until they retired while women stayed home to raise a family. This is the 21st century though, and I like to think our ancestors would be appalled if we weren’t continually evolving and growing.
You don’t have to pick just one career anymore, as nothing in life is more certain than change itself. If you are one of those lucky few who find a career they love and want to keep forever, I admire you. But for the rest of us, life holds a lot of uncertainties.
Don’t let the fear of not achieving your goals keep you from trying; and vice versa, don’t be afraid of letting go of a goal you’ve been pursuing to accept an unexpected opportunity. Our lives are constant works in progress, and sometimes while in pursuit of one goal, life takes a new direction.
As the only certainty in life is that nothing is certain, there may be times it’s wise to let go of one goal that no longer fits in order to embrace another. Otherwise, we’d all be superheroes and princesses when we grow up.
But don’t take it from me. Take it from Peter Pan, “to live would be an awfully big adventure.”
