Perhaps in the short time being more flexible and in the moment is better, while over time Marshall Goldsmiths maxim regarding goals not surrendered of “unrealized ambitions end up being frustrated yearnings for the soul” might hold.
Your solution sounds more European and likely better for overall satisfaction. However, if you for some reason did want to get to grade VIII on the piano and the ability to watch and notice the hues at sunset didn’t come with a mental cue to deep down legitimately let go of that (not to be Buddhist) inkling of desire, then you’re in trouble.
Frankly, if I'm not so driven to get to grade VIII on piano it's on my mind with or without fake goals, I don't really see the point of getting to there?
Sure, agree, but the more subtle second order point is that those unrealized potentially borderline subconscious things you set out for your self can accumulate and gnaw at you with low acuity yet chronically forever.
As a datapoint American garages are full of dormant dust covered dreams. It takes effort to donate that exercise bike or old piano to Goodwill because you have to face your demons that you will _never_ become that version of yourself, there's no future you that will be really fit, and without evidence I'll assert that it's that very conscious act which symbolically represents the destruction of ambiguity is difficult for most humans. So we go through our life with splinters serving as thorns we carry around forvever.
We're getting a little too foo-foo spiritual from here which is probably against HN rules, so I'll stop at that comment.
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It’s tough because it’s probably both.
Perhaps in the short time being more flexible and in the moment is better, while over time Marshall Goldsmiths maxim regarding goals not surrendered of “unrealized ambitions end up being frustrated yearnings for the soul” might hold.
Your solution sounds more European and likely better for overall satisfaction. However, if you for some reason did want to get to grade VIII on the piano and the ability to watch and notice the hues at sunset didn’t come with a mental cue to deep down legitimately let go of that (not to be Buddhist) inkling of desire, then you’re in trouble.
Throw in a Canadian quarter to your halfpence.
Frankly, if I'm not so driven to get to grade VIII on piano it's on my mind with or without fake goals, I don't really see the point of getting to there?
Sure, agree, but the more subtle second order point is that those unrealized potentially borderline subconscious things you set out for your self can accumulate and gnaw at you with low acuity yet chronically forever.
As a datapoint American garages are full of dormant dust covered dreams. It takes effort to donate that exercise bike or old piano to Goodwill because you have to face your demons that you will _never_ become that version of yourself, there's no future you that will be really fit, and without evidence I'll assert that it's that very conscious act which symbolically represents the destruction of ambiguity is difficult for most humans. So we go through our life with splinters serving as thorns we carry around forvever.
We're getting a little too foo-foo spiritual from here which is probably against HN rules, so I'll stop at that comment.
I can totally concur that the second order effect of being honest towards self is the key and valuable thing here.
Thank you for this insight, I did not realize earlier that this is the key thing and think it's an important fundamental idea.