Goals and Achievements

"I know my limitations and if i aim too high i will lose sight of only pleasing myself," this was a line a friend of mine hit me with when I asked about her ambitions. I found it very curious as she's not only intelligent but also very ingenious, needless to say I had to have her explain her statement. Now to be fair, I did ask her about attaining a Nobel Peace Prize one day for a discovery or re-discovery of epic proportions. Still though I questioned the meaning of the statement on a deeper level (as I'm prone to doing) and my mind is racing as I write this minute.

My first thought was "if I aim too high" I have to admit I will forever have problems grasping this concept as I do not believe in aiming too high on any level, so needless to say, I'm baffled. A further look however tells a different story, the last part is where the real story lies as she clearly states that she doesn't want to lose sight of her main goal which is to please herself. This was the clincher for me really and the part that really illuminated the meaning that I grasped from her statement. Long ago I learned that for some people, it is easier to see what they will become rather than how they can adjust themselves to be a particular situation, simply put for some individuals, the outcome is easier to accept than than the means to adjust who they can be. For some, following a particular path will surely lead to an ending that has consequences so dreaded for that individual that they would prefer not to move at all, while for others, the path is but a means to the end and the consequences of such a path is but a small price to pay in the quest for fulfillment. So you're still not sure as to what I speak of? Well let me give you an example: A nineteen (19) year old is considering taking up studies abroad in Mass Communications, while he's amazing socially and has a tenacity that most professionals within the industry would class as intimidating, he himself sees his potential as a tool that may be unfortunately exploited and abused to destroy the reputations of targeted individuals by whosoever his employers maybe. This may seem far fetched for some, but thinking long term is crucial to understanding what you really want out of life. His experiences and his eyes reveal to him what the practices and norms are in the present day, a simple glance into the future based on such standards reveals a grim outlook with an even bleaker prospect of things changing. So he decides to not pursue his ambition to the level that he will suffer such exploitation and limit his career to a level where he can perform but not within the confines of the foreseen destruction. It goes right back to my very said same friend who said that "if I aim too high I will lose sight of pleasing myself."

How will you define the limits of your goals and aspirations? It's simple really, all you have to do is be honest with yourself. Do you really think that what's important to you now will matter even three years into the future? Is it possible that your current lifestyle will allow you to maintain your future ambitions? How much are you willing to sacrifice in order to achieve your ultimate dream? Most importantly is that dream in correspondence to the will of god? These simple questions are extremely difficult to answer if we're not completely honest with ourselves and lack the maturity to accept true self criticism. Blaming the structure of a system for one's inability to succeed is ridiculous and immature, for as oppressive as a system maybe, true character and strength of faith and spirit allows one to be innovative enough to overcome such obstacles. There is absolutely no excuse for failure other than self destruction, if you convince yourself that you can't make it then I'm sorry but you won't. Let's be honest with ourselves, even if an opportunity did fall into your lap for you to rise to the occasion, you wouldn't have the strength of mind to even make the few sacrifices involved to get to the next level, and it's all because you set yourself up for failure long before you even got started.

There's no right or wrong way to get what you need, even if you steal, it's considered humanitarian to steal in the name of doing good and surviving for a living according to our failed legal system that allows criminals to walk free as a gesture of understanding how hard some of us live. Given that we have this much liberty to operate somebody explain to me how can you not know your limitations and work towards them?