Commentaries by Cynthia

Recently someone asked me, "What are some of your goals for the next five years?"

Caught off guard, I stammered out an answer, although the goals I gave were for the next two years at most. Later, as I was thinking about the question, I realized that goal setting is not one of my natural tendencies. While I am something of a visionary, in that I like to imagine what the future might hold, I tend to focus more on living day by day.

This mindset may be the result of having too many wrenches thrown into my earlier life plans. Perhaps I learned not to look too far into the future, fearing more disappointment. Or maybe it has more to do with honoring the present and all the people and resources that are currently a part of my life.

Sometimes reaching a certain goal is simply out of our hands and beyond our reach. So we learn to adapt. At other times, we are the ones questioning the sacrifices required to meet a goal. If the sacrifices are too great or ill-timed, we may choose to adjust or eliminate the goal altogether.

Another possible scenario is when a goal ends up clashing with a value or deeply held conviction. There are people who will do anything, right or wrong, to achieve a goal. I am not one of these people. If I start experiencing a guilty conscience, I know there will be no peace of mind until I find another way to get to where I want to go.

Thankfully, goals are not written in stone. We have the prerogative to change our minds about what is and isn’t likely to bring us happiness or fulfillment.

Writing makes me happy. Blogging makes me happy. Making a difference makes me happy. And my goal is to publish a book that will benefit society.