If a ship doesn't know its destination, then no direction of wind can be considered favorable. A person must have goals, otherwise they are like walking dead.
What knowledge should you learn?#
The other day, the teacher mentioned in class: "Learning leads to success, and success leads to learning." After studying for a long time, you want to apply the knowledge in your work, and after working for a long time, you realize the lack of knowledge and continue to study and improve. Therefore, we need to constantly learn knowledge and read books. But what books should we read? I believe that you should read books related to your goals, as this type of learning is the most effective. If you want to make money, read books related to making money; if you want to regulate your emotions, read books on psychology and philosophy.
Today, I wanted to learn about emotional control, so I picked up a book on psychology to read (after finishing it, I realized it was actually a philosophy book). The book is titled "The Coffee Shop at the End of the World," a collection of short stories that I finished reading in an hour and a half.
In this book, I saw the same viewpoint as the teacher's - that you should be goal-oriented in your actions. If you find the meaning of your existence, you will spend your time on things related to that meaning and feel happy and satisfied, feeling like you are in control of your own life. If what you want to do is not aligned with your goals, you will waste a lot of energy. By the time you have the opportunity to do what you want, you may no longer have the strength or time. People who haven't figured out their own goals also spend time doing many things, but they spend their time on things that do not contribute to achieving the meaning of life, and ultimately feel empty.
Why are you here?#
This book has a recurring question - why are you here (at the coffee shop)?
- Initially, the protagonist came to the coffee shop to relax after getting lost.
- When asked by the waiter, "Why are you here?", he replied, "Because I got lost while trying to relax."
- The waiter asked again, "Why did you want to relax?" and he replied, "Because I felt unhappy with work and bored with life."
- The waiter asked again, "Why do you feel unhappy and bored?"... "What kind of work and life do you want?"...
In the end, guided by multiple questions, the protagonist couldn't answer his own life goals, his own meaning of existence. Why exactly is he living?
The people at the coffee shop told the protagonist: If you find the meaning (goal) of your existence, you will make an effort to spend your time on things related to that meaning, and you will feel happy and satisfied. You will no longer wander aimlessly, but feel like you are in control of your own life. Moreover, you will excel in doing that thing.
Here are some excerpts:
Excerpt 1:#
The movements of a sea turtle follow the laws of the ocean. When the waves push towards the shore, opposite to the direction the sea turtle is moving, it will float and paddle, but only to stay in place. When the waves surge towards the ocean, it will paddle faster, allowing it to ride the waves and move forward.
The sea turtle never fights against the waves, but cleverly uses the power of the waves. The reason I couldn't catch up with it is because I ignored the direction of the waves and kept paddling. At first, I could keep up with the sea turtle and sometimes even slow down to wait for it. But in waves moving in the opposite direction, the more I swam forward, the more exhausted I felt. By the time the waves moved in the same direction as my swimming, I no longer had enough energy to move forward with the waves.
"As the waves came and went, I became more and more exhausted and powerless. The sea turtle, on the other hand, optimized its efficiency by leveraging the power of the waves. That's why it swims faster than me."
Knowing the meaning of one's life, one can spend time on things that contribute to achieving that meaning. People who haven't figured out the meaning of their lives also spend time doing many things. Therefore, I came to the conclusion that they (people with low satisfaction in life) spend their time on things that do not contribute to achieving the meaning of life, and ultimately feel empty.
People who know the meaning of their lives are full of energy and perseverance in their actions. They always have good luck and opportunities by their side. Because they always keep their goals in mind, when opportunities arise, they don't forget their goals and can seize the opportunities. Opportunities are for those who are prepared, including mentally prepared.
Excerpt 2:#
If your meaning is to become a millionaire, then you should do everything you can to do things that align with your definition of a "millionaire."
① If this means making friends with other millionaires, then go make friends.
② If this means working hard to save up a million, then go work.
Every day, many people want you to spend your time and energy on them. For example, the emails you receive. If you plan to participate in every activity, take part in every promotion, and enjoy every unsolicited service, you will have no free time left.
And that's just emails. Think about those who want to grab your attention through television, the internet, restaurants, tourist destinations, and so on. You will quickly realize that you are doing what everyone else is doing, or what others want you to do.
Who would have thought that just reading junk mail could consume an entire year of your life? (The book calculates the amount of time spent doing something in a lifetime)
All the examples illustrate the same point: spend your time on things that contribute to achieving the meaning of your life, and you will do everything you can and feel satisfied.
Regarding the question of why you are here. Some people figure it out when they are young, some start thinking about it when they are older, and some never figure it out throughout their entire lives. This phenomenon is quite interesting.
How to find answers#
An effective method to answer a question is to use a question as the answer and keep asking until you find the answer to the ultimate question, which is often close to your true self.
Why go to college? To find a job. Why do you want to find a job? To make money. Why do you want to make money? To buy a house. Why do you want to buy a house? To get married. Why do you want to get married... Keep asking, and you will eventually get a satisfactory answer.
As the saying goes, your goals determine your direction. If a ship doesn't know its destination, then no direction of wind will be favorable.