In my last article, I wrote about how we shouldn’t be wasting our time on such trivial things, day in and day out. Every morning does not need to be spent scrolling our Facebook feeds. Every day does not need to be spent perusing cat videos. Every night does not need to be spent streaming Netflix. It doesn’t, and yet we do it. The latest trends, as always, consume us.
Guilty. Guilty. Guilty.
I have done this time and time again, and you have too. We all have. But where has that gotten us? We live in a world where debt is at an all time high (because we spend aimlessly). We live in a world in which we lead unhealthy lifestyles (fast food and staying inside more). We live in a world where dreams are kept dreams, because no one wants to set a goal and actually put in the work to achieve it. And thus, we all lead unhappy lives.
I may be off on this assumption, but I’m going to guess you have something you’d like to achieve in life yet. Are you happy that you have not? Be real with yourself. I’m not. I’m not as happy as I could be, and that’s because I get upset with myself over how I spend my time and how I let opportunities pass by to achieve my goals. I have to be better, and I will be better, as life goes on.
We only get one life; why not do everything we can to be happy in it?
I don’t want anyone to think I’m calling you out. I’m not. I’m also calling myself out. I want to lead a happy and prosperous life as much as the next person, but I too have based this posturing in dream form. I’m writing this to turn it into goal form. I have goals and I have never laid out how I am going to actually achieve them… until now.
Let’s start a new trend; let’s work towards everything we truly want out of life. Let’s work together. Build one another up. Let’s build our own empires and tell our own stories. Do not let the trends of today decide your life. I will not sit idly by, and let an app on my phone dictate if I am going to be productive today or waste a couple more hours. Now, as a I always say, I can binge a show on Netflix with the best of them. I can partake in a few (ok, quite a few) beers with friends over a Packers game (Wisconsinite here). But not EVERY day. Or night. It just isn’t healthy. Mentally or physically. And certainly not for your future goals.
Remember, if it doesn’t matter tomorrow, it doesn’t matter today. As a general rule, of course. We all need our release days or nights to just relax and do our own thing.
Without further adieu, I’d like to put my goals out into the universe. I’d also like to re-engineer how I plan on getting there. Basically, what do I think I need to do or what are my thoughts on how I reach these goals. And if anyone else can help me out or has any suggestions, please, I’m all eyes and ears! The ways of doing so are subject to change, of course, as life goes on, but in this moment of time in my life, this is what I want to achieve.
GOAL # 1: HAVE MY OWN FUNERAL HOME: I have been in the funeral service industry for 5 years now, and while very short compared to those I look up to in it, I know that this is something I want to be involved with forever. I have been a licensed funeral director for 3.5 years now. I have always been someone with an eye towards ownership. My ways of reaching that goal are to clean up my finances, number one; and number two, by continuing to educate myself in as many ways as possible in terms of business, funerals, and opportunities to expand my professional portfolio. It doesn’t take a funeral service or business degree to own a funeral home, but it does take one to understand every aspect in running one.
GOAL # 2: BECOME A NY TIMES BESTSELLER: I have written one book so far in life (available here: The Game of Life and Poker), but it is not enough. Despite a few family and friends purchasing the book so far, it’s a meager start. But everyone has to start somewhere. And that’s why I want to write even more. Every day I should be writing, journaling, reading, taking notes, learning, etc. If I truly want to release a book that earns a spot on the NY Times Bestseller list, then I need to keep at it. And promote the heck out of said work.
GOAL # 3: WIN A WSOP BRACELET: The WSOP is an annual poker tournament series held in Las Vegas, NV. The WSOP stands for World Series of Poker, for those of you who are unaware. Every year, about 70 tournaments are held in hopes of each player winning a “bracelet,” and the prize money that goes with it. The bracelet is a piece of gold hardware that you wear on your wrist. You know, a bracelet. If it seems weird, it’s because it is, but that’s how every poker player is judged in the history books, by championships. Money comes and goes, and titles won throughout other tournaments held elsewhere, but you want a WSOP bracelet. The current record is 15, which is all you need to know about how hard they are to win, dating back 50 years now! The current record holder? Fellow Wisconsinite Phil Hellmuth Jr.
GOAL # 4: BECOME DEBT FREE: I, like almost every American, am in debt. I don’t claim to not be, nor will I say how much, but it is something that can become a nuisance if you let it. Debt can be something that feels hovering, that it just follows you wherever you go. It can drain your goals quicker than anything, by putting money towards something that has no value to you and your bank account. Unfortunately, I have had to make certain decisions in life based on how much or how little money I had available in a given moment. While I believe in investing and putting your money into numerous streams and not into all of one basket, it helps to have whatever you need when you want it. It helps to have the financial freedom to lead a life you truly want, and not what your wallet allows.
GOAL # 5: TO FISH FOREVER, IN TOTAL FREEDOM: One of my favorite things to do in this world, is to fish. To chill on a lake, to cast my rod out and enjoy some beers. Most recently, that was the life for me. But, as I dug deeper behind the meaning of what I’m truly trying to accomplish in life, I realized I need to be a better fisherman. I don’t just catch and release any longer, but to feed. I fish to feed my family. I fish for what God gave us, an abundance of food on this Earth. Everything we’d ever need is here, we just have to take advantage of it. Whether it is growing our own crops, or vegetables or fishing to catch enough protein for the week, everything is out there for us to take. But we have to be willing to put in the time. Time, which I do not currently have. My goal is to fish, for feeding and for freedom.
Five goals. Five ways to achieve them. What are yours?
Life, Death, and Everything In Between. 