Goals as Mirrors
Every goal begins as a fantasy — a story you tell yourself about who you’ll become if you follow it. But only action reveals the truth about what you actually want and, more importantly, who you really are.
This is why goals are best treated not as achievements, but as hypotheses.
Goals force you to engage with life. They pressure test fantasy with reality. And once reality enters the game, something interesting happens: the goal stops being the main subject of our focus. You become the subject.
Why? Because you’re finally in the driver’s seat closing feedback loops rather than day dreaming. But the real meta value of goals is only revealed if you have a reflection process.
Reflection slows time down enough to examine honestly a) whether your goals are actually serving you and b) your reactions to the journey itself.
Ask…am I enjoying the process? How and why am I reacting to obstacles and friction? Do I even like achieving this goal? Is it bringing me closer to what I actually want?
Goals aren’t scorecards for your discipline or worth. They are experiments in self-understanding and discovery. Temporary structures that create friction, and through friction reveal character and true intent.
In the end, the achievement itself is often the smallest part of the story. You can finish the race and forget the thrill (and pain) within weeks.
But the self-awareness of what you actually want and how you respond to obstacles follows you everywhere - if you stop to reflect along the way.
*Journaling is my preferred method of reflection:
