I remember towards the end of my time at Uni going through the milkround of interviews, trying to get a job for when I graduated. In one of them I was asked something along the lines of what I wanted to achieve in my life. I answered that I wanted to be happy, and he looked at me askance, as if to say “Is that it?”
Now, maybe that’s not the best answer to that quesion in an interview, as it sounds a bit trite and fluffy. But I stand by it; there are so many people who aren’t happy. They’re stuck, bored, stressed, depressed, etc.
So, if I can look back at the end of my life and feel that I have been happy more often that not, then I will feel like I’ve achieved my life goal. And part of that is feeling that what I do makes a difference. So this is not as unambitious a goal as it sounds, and maybe as it came across in that interview so long ago. So far I think I’m doing OK, but I hope to have many more years to work on this!
I cheer you on. A life recounted as more happy than not is a much loftier goal than money or power. It may not be what most interviewers for enterprises want you to value, but there are many companies out there with much to answer for in terms of damage to the environment, screwing people who lack the financial clout to strike back, undermining our health, etc. I think if you can live your life in such a way that you can look yourself in the mirror every day and like who you see, you have done well.
Thanks! That’s what I’m striving for!