The overarching theme of this quarter aims to examine our goals and how we make them, which will catapult us into the future. Some techniques for inquiry and concepts relating to perspective have been discussed. The thing is, I think you have been asked these questions a lot. I think you have been inundated with the need to go to a good college. I have asked you to question, not only that paradigm, but the entire education system, which seems a bit counter-productive for a teacher. The question,' what are you going to do with yourself', is multi-faceted and fraught with unknowns many people don't figure out until they are old. Then, at best, they can only say what they did, but are still unsure if it was right. So what is the value of analysis and goal setting? Further, do we have a grasp of what the world will look like in your immediate future? If not, what do we have wrong? How much have you bought in to the process? Are there good reasons for buying in? What responsibility do you have for shaping your own future? What responsibility do you have to the people who support you? How should you conceive of your own paradigms so that you avoid the pitfalls?
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Blog 1: Developing Goals Anticipating the Future
The overarching theme of this quarter aims to examine our goals and how we make them, which will catapult us into the future. Some techniques for inquiry and concepts relating to perspective have been discussed. The thing is, I think you have been asked these questions a lot. I think you have been inundated with the need to go to a good college. I have asked you to question, not only that paradigm, but the entire education system, which seems a bit counter-productive for a teacher. The question,' what are you going to do with yourself', is multi-faceted and fraught with unknowns many people don't figure out until they are old. Then, at best, they can only say what they did, but are still unsure if it was right. So what is the value of analysis and goal setting? Further, do we have a grasp of what the world will look like in your immediate future? If not, what do we have wrong? How much have you bought in to the process? Are there good reasons for buying in? What responsibility do you have for shaping your own future? What responsibility do you have to the people who support you? How should you conceive of your own paradigms so that you avoid the pitfalls?
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In an effort to answer this effectively, I want to address that everything is constantly changing. We can set goals and plan for the future, but only based on a personal estimation. It's always possible that at any moment our realities can disappear and replace themselves with something much better or much more harsh. The only thing we can do is live honestly to our full capacities, and do as much as we can to accomplish our hypothetical goals.
ReplyDeleteI think that no one can be completely sure of where they want to go or where they are headed. I believe it is important to have a direction in mind but also to be open to new opportunities.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most interesting questions, in my opinion, that Mr C posed here was when he asked if we ourselves have any sort of grasp on what the world looked like. This made me sit back and ponder for a while, and in classic TOK fashion, I found several arguable answers. On one hand, from a purely logical sense, we have no idea what's going to happen in the future. Aliens from another planet could come and exterminate us all, before the end of the week. We honestly don't know. On the other hand, by using what we know, we can make some pretty good guesses about the future. You might call it logical guessing. I'm sure there's a big fancy word for it somewhere but I don't really care. I can make a few "logical guesses" right now.I bet that the world will keep on turning for at least another decade, and that our town will probably expand a little as more people move in, and the university will add another building or two as more students attend. While we don't know anything for sure, the future can be quite predictable, but not always. On another, tertiary hand, there's us. You, me, anyone, really. It's completely up to us what the world will look like because everyone has their own outlook and personal experiences that come with being human. Someone could have a dream to build a bunch of cities all over the planet, and another person might really want to replant the entire amazon rainforest. These two individuals know, to some degree what the world will look like, although their two visions are most likely vastly different.
ReplyDeleteIn conclusion, I suppose the takeaway here would be to live in the now, but don't forget about the future. In all honestly, I think that a bunch of this is totally bs but that doesn't even matter because in the future it might matter a whole ton. Or it might not.
The value of analysis and goals can be viewed through several different scopes. For me, analyzing everything allows me to gain a more complete understanding of whatever I'm looking at, whether it be life in general or where I plan on going to college in the future. As far as whether we have a grasp on what the world will look like in our immediate future, nobody ever truly knows. Certain people may have a general idea, but it is extremely rare that anybody possesses a full understanding of what their immediate future will look like.
ReplyDeleteThe most valuable question that Mr. C asks in this post is what responsibility we have in shaping our own future. The truth is that we only possess as much responsibility as we want to possess, and in certain cases are allowed to possess. Some are more privileged than others, and generally have more control over their future. But in general, the future is what you choose to make of it, whether you have more or less control.
I think it is important to set goals, and work to achieve them. On the other side of things we are always changing my goals are not the same as the ones I set when I was four and they are not the same as the ones I set freshman year. Our lives are constantly changing, with that are interests are always changing. Though this is not to say we shouldn’t set goals it just means we should always be working to set new goals. When people ask me what I want to do when I grow up, I have come up with the best answer I can think of. I don’t tell them my dream job I just tell them I want to be happy. Because that’s the truest answer I can give someone I’m 17 how the heck I’m I supposed to know what I want to do with my life. All I know is I want to be happy and I think that’s a pretty good start.
ReplyDeleteTo me, if there was no goal setting, it would be so hard to be passionate about doing something unless it meant the world to you. I set little goals for myself every day to get through everything but long term goals give you an idea of what the future could be like and what you would like it to be like. Analyzing past events can give you an idea of what to do and what not to do but it can also force you to make all decisions based on logic and reasoning rather than some decisions that need to be made with the heart. Overthinking will kill you because perfection is an unattainable goal. There is also no way to see how life will play out and see what events will impact life but that's okay. Not knowing is what makes life worth it but it's still okay to plan for what you want in life because you won't get everything you want in life and things change all the time. Having an idea of what you want in the future gives you the chance to change your mind again and again while still keeping the core values of yourself intact. Planning, to me, is how you figure out who you are. Planning helps you see what you like and what you want out of life. If you don't plan at least something and just float along in life taking whatever comes at you, how will you know what you want when it comes time to make large life decisions? Although planning can be looked at as sort of a negative idea at such a young age, for me, it has helped me discover myself in different aspects of life.
ReplyDeleteI don't think setting goals and buying in to this process is a problem, as long as it comes with the acknowledgement that setting a goal does not always correlate with its success. Nearly none of what I consider to be my most important accomplishment in my short life thus far have been pre planned in advance and charted on a neat and tidy timeline. Sometimes success can have everything to do with spontaneously seizing an opportunity wholeheartedly and nearly nothing to do with how well crafted and monitored a goal was. A goal can have a sense of tediousness; it can too easily become a chore. It is not nearly as exciting to accomplish something when that success has been fiercely motivated by the fear of not accomplishing it.
ReplyDeleteI believe it is very difficult to plan for the future. You never know when you will want to change paths, or completely start over. I don't think people should plan out every detail of their lives. It gives their life an agenda that will most likely be broken, by accident or on purpose.
ReplyDeleteI find that the value of goal setting is that it provides a guideline or plan for you to follow in your life. It is very difficult to plan for the future because we live in a world full of changes and innovation which occurs everyday making it very difficult to have a real grasp on the future. This makes setting goals for the future that can work and be practical in the future world very difficult because we can account for the future changes that may occur In our society. For me personally I completly by into the purpose of goal setting, I always like having a plan or a path to follow for the future so I can stay on track for what I want. I think setting goals for the future is a great thing as I stated before it gives you a path to follow so you can stay in track for the future. I also belive that we have full authority in shaping our futures and how we want them to be, even with all the factors in life we still control ourselves and what we do. With relation to what are responsibilitis we owe to the people who support us my mom always says this great quote "Everyone should find something they enjoy and something that contributes positivily to the world around us and do that for a Career." I completely agree with that idea that we have a responsibility to each other to contribute positivly to the world around us, thus allowing us to live in a positive world that continues to be innovated and moving towards a better place for all of us to live. We have to understand our paradigms, so we can understand how our perceptions of the world are influenced by our world views. And we can avoid pitfalls by understanding that the way we see the world is not always right, by understanding that we can avoid pitfalls.
ReplyDeleteI am living my life right now essentially with the motto, "wing it, and if that doesn't work, wing it better next time". Now to a lot of people that would seem incredibly unorganized, and almost hectic in the thousands of things that are getting thrown at us every day. But I find setting goals to have both good and bad sides. It is statistically proven that if you write down goals and look at them every day you are more likely to achieve them. It can be argued that if you want something enough, you shouldn't have to write it down, but that's besides the point. The point is that while goals are helpful in direction and focus, it puts enormous amounts of pressure on us. I've set goals for most of my life, and eventually had to stop because the pressure just kept building and building. I go day by day, because if I look too far into the future, I'm not sure I can handle it, or even be constant enough to ensure that result. I like to wing it because for me it's better, and yes, things do catch me by surprise, and I do scramble to throw things together sometimes, but it works and it makes me happy personally. Forming goals to narrow your future prospects is cheating yourself out of everything you could do, when you focus on just one thing, and I like to keep my horizons broad and open.
ReplyDeleteGoal setting is one of the most important aspects of life, and is something we've been doing since a very young age. It is important to keep in mind somewhere you want to go, or something you want to achieve in the future. Goal setting gives people motivation, and a reason to achieve something important. It also gives people a greater sense of organization in their lives, whether that is god or bad. However, goal setting is best in moderation, because it is also good to keep in mind that the present is as important as the future, if not more so. Sometimes goal setting can cloud ones view of the present, leaving them only stressed and thinking about the future, Living in the present is something that Americans don't do enough of. I for one constantly think about the future. I find myself distracted from the present moment by the homework I have to do, or a test coming up. This is good in a sense because it keeps me on top of my work, but is it worth constantly being distracted from the present? I think there is a fine line between thinking about the future too much, and not enough. Finding that line, however, is a different matter.
ReplyDeleteI think that the value of goal setting is structure because people like something to work up to and try to achieve. Analysis is important for regulating these goals and applying them to people's lives, and making them realistic. I don't think that we have an immediate grasp on the future because each person predicts the future based on their life or current events. We don't realize that there are many factors that influence every moment, and people only have control over so many of hose factors. Therefore people are only responsible for the direction they want their life to go, they are not responsible for every twist and turn because they can't control every one else in the world
ReplyDeleteI feel that while goal setting is somewhat unnecessary, as some of the most successful people had merely a general idea as to what they wanted to do with their life, and many as well stumbled upon this successful role. However, by not setting goals it creates a sense of confusion, as there is no set direction. The only cure for that confusion is to become deeply ingrained in stoicism or to create a ground plan for the future, which I believe the latter to be far more effective and easy.
ReplyDeleteI believe goals help individuals to prosper in specific areas of life, and that goal setting is essential in order to move forward in life, however it is also important to note that the world is changing everyday and we need to be able to adjust our goals as those changes occur.
ReplyDeleteJonathan-
ReplyDeleteI believe that Goals are a way for us to see what our ultimate objectives are. We use them so that we can see what we want in the very end. But to reach those goals we need to anticipate the future in order to reach them. What do we need to do and how we will do it. But this world is passing and so is its desires, so sometimes we need to change how we anticipate the future. And by being able to change how we view that future we can reach our goal. That I believe is the basis for a successful future.
I do set goals for myself as they help keep me motivated and on track to completing what I am currently involved with. Especially with all the chaos and pressure of the world there are a million things that can stress you out... But it is impossible to do a million things at once. I try to set general goals like go to a college that I like and hopefully offers me a scholarship; I try not to set goals that will close a lot of doors because as many have already stated, everything is constantly changing beyond our control. So I believe it is best to live in the moment do the best that you can possibly do in that moment so you don waste time worrying about things we cant control. It also important not to narrowed your goals too much because you don't want to spent countless hours to achieve an extremely specific goal that could disappear at any time.
ReplyDeleteI find myself accommodating my goals to the obstacles life throws at me. This seems counterproductive and, quite frankly, the opposite of what "goal setting" is attempting to achieve. Goals have always been temporary to me wether or not I actually achieve them. I have yet to find an effective strategy in setting goals for myself with a more consistent outcome.
ReplyDelete^ i agree with your method of acomadating your goals to your current life situation. I have found that goal setting. although motivational, is not always productive if your desires change, and said goal, is no longer what you truly want.
ReplyDeleteSetting goals is more or less a way for us to derive a degree on motivation to do whatever may be required of us in the present moment. To buy into the system in which we live is to spend one's youth preparing to enter the workforce in order to provide for oneself. This simplification of the course which so many people's lives take seems dull and systematic. It is the many variations that exist within these parameters which give our lives intrigue and direction. We set goals so that we may work toward a preferable position within society, in whatever form that may take. Obviously the setting of goals is rendered pointless by the fact that we have no way of knowing the future. It simply functions as a way for us to give ourselves purpose in the present moment by projecting into our perceived futures.
ReplyDeleteI believe it is different for everyone, whether or not you have your future completely planned out, you can't know what is going to happen. It is good to have a basic blueprint for what you want to experience or succeed in your life but it has to be on a very vague timeline with how many possibilities could happen. Working towards your goals is good for mental health and (most of the time) physical, being able to get up do stuff you've thought about doing and doing what ou think you would enjoy. Going "with the flow" doesn't always get you to the best point but even then you have to make decisions on what you want to do next. So pretty much you have no idea what the future holds and you can't control it but even with that, people always try to shape it how they think would be best for them.
ReplyDeleteI believe that we should except what happens with our present and apply it to how we handle different situation in the future. You never know what life is going to throw at you next so you have to keep pushing forward and learn from your mistakes. Mistakes are what help you grow and become better as a person. It is a good idea to have a brief outline of what you want your future to look like but if that plan you make doesn't work you must learn to except that and change. You are constantly changing in the world and you must be able to adapt those so called blueprints to how your surroundings are changing.
ReplyDeleteGoal setting is a very useful and needed thing in our lives. Goals motivate you to do things that sometimes you don't want to do and goals also help you reach for things that challenge you. It is impossible to know what our future is going to be like, that being said you have to be able to adjust your goal or even change your goal. Sometimes you have goals that keep coming up in your life because you haven't achieved it yet. That doesn't mean you don't stop striving for the goal, you just haven't achieved it yet and that doesn't mean you don't want to still achieve it.
ReplyDeleteI think its incredibly interesting to consider our motives for setting goals. Why do we choose ambition and success? Is it for personal reasons, or are we responding to the people and expectations around us? For myself, it's a mix of both. But, what if we eliminated one of the two driving forces? If left up to your own devices, would you have the motivation to progress as an individual? Would you contribute to the betterment of yourself and your peers if nobody pushed you? On the flip side, would we be able to find happiness under the constant pressure to set and achieve goals? Would the world be diversified as it is without the freedom of personal preference?
ReplyDeleteAnalysis is important because everything we are told is not always true. If we don’t question and investigate the things we are told then we are fated to a life of disappointment. It’s sad to say that analyzing is underutilized in our society which is a problem because then we don’t know the possible consequences of our decisions. Goal setting is important but again we don’t think of the process of achieving that goal, we just jump to that goal without considering the consequences that can arise from it, which is why family and friends are very important in this process because being exposed to other ideas and opinions will help balance and pace yourself. If we pace ourselves and consider different possibilities then our future will be on a healthy path.
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ReplyDeleteI think there are many benefits to setting goals. Personally, setting goals allows me to have a clearer focus. With dealing with school and sports and family and friends and etc, setting out my intentions and desires clears up my mind a wee bit. A clearer mind gives me some clarity with decision making as well as peace of mind. I don't think setting goals benefits everyone, but I also don't think it has any harmful affects. I realize now that my tendency to set goals is shaped by how I've been raised. My dad has always been adamant about the importance of setting goals, especially in athletics. He thinks it is the best thing to do when striving for success. Without him telling me this so often I would less likely make them on my own. I guess my point is that the act of goal-setting is very personal. I think one has to figure out for themselves whether or not its worth it to set goals and whether or not it will benefit them. Unfortunately, it can be a lot of pressure, internally, to set adequate, reachable goals, but eso si que es.
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ReplyDeleteIt seems almost impossible to set a goal and not do so in one's own self-interest. Perhaps that is why we find goal setting so valuable to the process of what will become, ultimately, self actualization. Therefore, when asked the ambiguous and asinine question of "What do you want to do with your life?" the careful consideration of goals when formulating a response is necessary. I have said before and I will say again that it is much easier to figure out what you don't want to be than it is to figure out what you do want to be. That being said, acknowledgement of what you want in life is an important skill for both the future and for learning about yourself. If this acknowledgement comes in the form of goal setting then the benefits are undeniable.
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ReplyDeleteI watched the wear sunscreen video and really enjoyed it. I liked how at the beginning of the video he knew that only one out of however many lessons he told us to follow was based on scientific research; all of the other lessons were just things in life that anyone can do that will make days and futures a little brighter.
ReplyDeleteOn the point of goal setting, I think that it is really important to set goals so that you can have an idea of where you want to go in life. If those goals don't work out, it isn't the end of the world and at least they can give a starting place for someone. They can then build from there. I think that by setting goals, we can determine what we want our future to be. We have control over almost all of our futures and lives. Obviously there are unexpected things that come up, but if we stick to our goals as much as possible I think we are able to make the future whatever we want it to be. it is important to consider other peoples perspective's and their goals because they could potentially help us and open our eyes to new things, they could help our future (change paradigms). Being too close minded in the sense of paradigms can be a very negative thing for an individual and I think something that is very important is the fact that we stay as flexible to new ideas as possible and that we try and accept new things everyday.
I think we as humans think we know way more than we do. I believe most people wake up in the morning and say this is how my day is going to go, but don't consider that maybe they could crash driving to school, or choke on breakfast, and have our days way different than we would have predicted. So I think goals are things that are good to motivate someone but can't be completely adhered to.
ReplyDeleteI think that setting certain goals for yourself can be worthwhile. In many classes I've taken, like psychology and health, there have been whole chapters on the "how to set goals" and "the importance of goal setting" with tips like "be reasonable with your goals" and "setting goals will help you accomplish things." This is because everyone likes to think that to some extent they can affect the future by setting goals, and working towards those goals, even if they don’t know what might happen to them. Nobody can plan fully for the future. Anything is possible, even if the odds are slim. But if you lay out for yourself exactly what you want to do, you are more likely of moving closer to those things. You can be disappointed if something gets in your way, but you can’t let it discourage you. You might have to reevaluate and set new goals accordingly.You don’t have to know your endgame in life. If you do, that’s great. But it’s not necessary for having a great and happy life.
ReplyDeleteSeveral points that have been made regarding the setting of goals have discussed the benefits of living ‘in the now’, as opposed to setting a goal and working hard, maybe even sacrificing specific desires to reach that goal. While I do agree that happiness is one of the essential keys to life and that we should live life to the fullest every day that we can, I believe that by haphazardly going through life bouncing from one idea/desire to the next is an unstable and unsustainable way to go through life, and eventually that life will come crashing to a halt. By setting goals and attempting to look into the future, one is setting a motivational tool in front of them, which many times helps them to succeed and be successful in their life. Another consequence of ‘living in the now’, is that by doing things that please you that day or moment, generally that doesn’t make a big impact on the world or any other being at all. I believe that that is exactly why our society is so focused on having people ‘figure out their lives’ before they have even really begun them. A person with a plan will usually become a productive member of society and have an impact on the people around them. Of course, maybe we should all be focusing on ourselves and not create goals, but rather be happy with who we are at that moment, and I think where those two ideas meet is where many splits in our society today occur.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that the process of questioning things is counterproductive. The fact that persists to me is that most of these topics we already question. Although many may know little on the subject, most people have had to evaluate this aspect of their life that is so large as education. True, this isn't the only topic that we will question in this class, and many people may venture out of their comfort zone in being asked to question these things. However, critical thinking is a highly valuable skill, and the skepticism that comes with questioning is very advantageous in the long run.
ReplyDeleteI think for you to a get were you want to go you have to have a set "goal" or set bar if you will, because you need something to motivate you and make you want it. with that being said when setting a goal you have to do it because you want the achieve it you can't just be saying you want to do something and try and achieve it when you don't want to do it. if you know you want it then go for it.
ReplyDeleteThe value of goal setting is motivation and the creation of a reference point for progress. Without goals progress would not be observable and would therefore stagnate. I believe that we have a grasp of what the probable immediate future is, but there is always variability. Say you where going to open your locker at school. You know that you are the only person who knows the combination so chances are all of your things are still in your locker. But there is the very slight chance that someone broke into the janitors office, stole the master key and then decided to steal all of the stuff from your specific locker. In all aspects of life there is this small amount of unknown but usually we can at least somewhat accurately predict the outcome of an action we take.
ReplyDeleteI believe that our future is solely our own responsibility, but people interested in helping you can be used as stepping stones. It is ultimately our choice wether or not to accept help that is offered to us. William Ernest Henley sums this idea up in his poem Invictus, saying "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul."
I believe that the value of goal setting is very important because it provides direction and motivation to those who can set good reasonable goal for themselves. Although if your goals you set are unrealistic they can be detrimental to your future. The same goes for analysis, you have to have a good balance of trust and question. This is because everything has an unknown and if you attempted to question and analyze everything you would live in constant fear and with the absence of this question/analysis you would take too many risks. I also think that it is important to analyze your goals because as you continue to set them some are going to work out better than others. So if you can look back and analyze your past goals and decisions you set to find the ones that work best for you and better your future based on past experience.
ReplyDeleteI believe that no one knows what their future has to offer, even the people with strong set goals and life plans because life can change in an instant and no one can anticipate the changes that life could bring to them. Everyone's future is their own responsibility, you can't rely on others to support you.
I believe that the value of goal setting is very important because it provides direction and motivation to those who can set good reasonable goal for themselves. Although if your goals you set are unrealistic they can be detrimental to your future. The same goes for analysis, you have to have a good balance of trust and question. This is because everything has an unknown and if you attempted to question and analyze everything you would live in constant fear and with the absence of this question/analysis you would take too many risks. I also think that it is important to analyze your goals because as you continue to set them some are going to work out better than others. So if you can look back and analyze your past goals and decisions you set to find the ones that work best for you and better your future based on past experience.
ReplyDeleteI believe that no one knows what their future has to offer, even the people with strong set goals and life plans because life can change in an instant and no one can anticipate the changes that life could bring to them. Everyone's future is their own responsibility, you can't rely on others to support you.
It is extremely important to set goals. Even though we don't know what the world will be like in a week or 20 years, setting goals gives you motivation to become a better person, whether that is in your personal or professional life. Analyzing these goals is equally important. If you set a goal that is unreasonable, or something changes that makes it unreasonable, this goal can actually be hurtful. Also, if you set a goal but you realize that you don't like what you're doing, you should stop trying to achieve it. Therefore, it is very important to be constantly analyzing the goals you have set.
ReplyDeleteIn my experience, goal-setting can actually be very counterproductive because it forces you to decide, at least in part, in what aspect or to what degree you want to perform a task. This results in efforts to meet exactly that goal - no more, no less - and essentially, unless one's potential is exactly equal to their goal, there is a primary adverse effect associated: either their potential was higher than their goal and thus their goal restrained them, or their goal was greater than their potential and so they experience failure in an objective they set themselves. Repeated, this normalizes failure in the mindset of the overenthusiastic goal-setter so that even their goals themselves become devalued. This brings me to another effect, which is that when a goal is set, the goal doesn't in itself form motivation so that motivation must come from something else, often anticipation of a result. This is based on expectation and not an exact representation of reality, so setting goals and meeting them, while it may be fulfilling initially, often results in a letdown created by the idealistic image we create to motivate ourselves. This makes goal-setting a self-reinforcing behaviour, and not done correctly it is also a self-devaluing behaviour as already stated. Overzealous goalsetting may very well end you up in a continuously more meaningless life.
ReplyDeleteOf course, this only applies when goals are explicitly set. The action of goal-setting isn't inherently bad or destructive - however, the unrealistic expectations we as first world humans have of the world lead us to make misguided goals, to experience failure without taking advantage of the knowledge that springs forth from failure, and so forth, all tendencies that damage our ability to set meaningful and realistic goals and then meet them.
I think that people who have a rigid plan regarding what their future holds, are just setting themselves up for extreme disappointment. Along the way something will go awry and the best way to cope with this is just roll with the punches and see it as a new opportunity.
ReplyDeleteI think that the most important thing is to do something that you're going to be happy with. You can't let other people dictate what goals you should set for yourself, or what you should do with your life; it has to be what YOU want to do and what YOU will be happy with. This is pretty hard to accomplish, however, as we don't always know what will make us happy, and we've had the American ideal that college, a good paying job, and a nice family will be what makes us happy, and maybe that's true, but most likely not for everybody. Its important to find your lane, and set goals for yourself within that lane that will make you happy, not make other people happy.
ReplyDeleteAnalysis and goal setting hold serious value in the process of determining what our lives will be like in the future. Being able to analyze the many facets of our lives and to determine the ever-changing goals based on how these sessions of “self-analysis” turn out, is extremely important. Of course, the weakness in goal setting is the unknown variables in the world that we have no control over as human beings, that which is undetermined and can change our future and skew what is realistic within our goals. It is also impossible to determine which choices will inevitably result in success, and rather the system that is set in place for us now is the right one, or if a distancing from that system will yield greater success. Further, the situational nature and relativity of success are a large part of this. Different people are born into certain situations that may make their definition of success different from someone born into different circumstances, though many overcome the situations they are born into, often the ease that comes with the journey to success is much easier for an individual with little to overcome. (Here I am referring to those obstacles that are predisposed and impossible for an individual to control, rather than those that are self-inflicted, though those decisions are a factor as well.) Someone who is born into poverty and has monetary obstacles to overcome may have less lofty goals than someone who has never had an obstacle placed in front of them and has certain advantages in the system we have set up today in the US, in which money can be a large determining factor in how easily success is grasped. The idea of “buying in” to the process is not necessarily bad depending on what you want to get out of it. If you want the generic idea of success (in which you go to a nice college and get a “nice job”) then manipulating the system in place may be to your advantage. If you seek other modes of success, then “buying in” may not be the best option. Each road to success is completely relative to what you think success should be and what you decide the appropriate way to get there is. Where responsibility comes in is where these paradigms are formed. Though some would argue we have little responsibility over other people’s perceptions of our success, the involvement of others in our lives is a very real factor we must address. Though it is easy to pick and choose what you want to be, where you want to go to school, or perhaps to choose none of those things, these decisions are completely selfish in the way that they do not address the possibility of how others fall into this lifestyle. If these individuals are often time your support role, as well as your “back-up plan” if your attempt at success goes awry, then your dedication to reaching success should be greatly to please yourself and gain happiness, but also for those around you.
ReplyDeleteGoal setting is very important in my life in determining what I want to do in the next step. However, i feel that people have a tendency to set their goals way too high and that's when they begin to fall apart in their life. When it comes to setting yourself goals though they have to be something that you want to do otherwise when it doesn't happen you are just going to be disappointed. Despite all the schedules and planning that someone goes through though we can never perfectly plan out our future. Their is always other people around us who's plan for their future will interact with us at some point and possibly overwhelming destroy what we have planned. However that shouldn't stop someone from making a plan, I think that people should make plans for their future, but they shouldn't 'marry' it, they should always be ready to alter their idea for their future just in case their original plan fails, but overall its not a bad idea to have a plan for the future.
ReplyDeleteAs important as the process of setting goals is, what is equally important is what comes after. After setting a standard for oneself, one has to apply self-analysis to the entire journey. If a person succeeds in their goals, it is important to review all the things that led up to that success, in order to ascertain whether or not this accomplishment can be repeated. However, if one fails then this process of reflection is even more important. If a person fails in achieving their goals, they must look back at each event and decision that led up to that failure. It is in this process that self-discovery and personal growth actually happens. We must fall, in order to pick ourselves back up again.
ReplyDeleteI think that goals are very important to give you something to work for and a direction to go. i also think that it is important to have many small goals as well as large ones. And i think it important to be open minded when it comes to the large goals, rather than be laser focused and miss things going on around you. I also think its important to have many because failure to meet goals will always be a very large possibility and if you "put all your eggs in one basket" you are more likely to be more discouraged
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