We’ve been trained since kindergarten to establish goals in order to be productive. It’s so ingrained in our psyches that, I would maintain, it’s hard to do anything that doesn’t have a goal. Let’s get right down to examples.
Heather just got a bike for Christmas, and as a result, I’ve been riding my bike a bit more as well. I’ve been wondering why I don’t just go out by myself and ride for the shear joy of riding. Day before yesterday, Heather asked me if I wanted to ride to the park with her and Sierra. I said YES! We rode over there, Sierra played a bit, I rode around the park a few times, then we rode back home. Why “YES” to this, but “NO” to just going out for a ride. Answer: The latter activity has no goal. When the goal exists, namely, “taking Sierra to the park to let her play”, then it becomes more appealing.
If the term existed, I would call this “checkmark mentality.” The goal of taking Sierra to the park can be checked off easily.
How about my daily walk? Well, I would like to tell myself this is for the joy of walking, and it is to an extent. But it’s also about achieving the goal of walking everyday. Do I walk everyday? CHECK! Do I walk the same paths that I know intimately? CHECK. Do I meander around on a random route? NO. Why? a) I don’t know how long it would take, b) I don’t know if it would be a circuit (I hate backtracking), c) it would require mental energy to figure out where to go, d) I don’t know how far it is ahead of time. Obviously, for these reasons, it’s clear that I’m not walking for the shear joy of walking, and that’s sad.
Have you ever taken off in your car with no destination? I’m not talking about cruising. The goal, is getting laid. I’m not talking about driving around randomly looking for houses to buy. That has a goal! I’m not talking about taking your brand new corvette out for a spin. The goal there is to be seen and to cause envy. No, I’m talking about utterly having no destination and no goal. I’ve done it a grand total of one time, and it was here in Tucson a year or two ago. I remember it clearly and it was very very wierd.
I think of all the books in Borders on goal setting. My advice: You already know how to set goals. Read books on reacquiring spontaneity! And to show I’m serious, I’m going to go out on my bike today with no damn destination!
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