Monday 14 October 2013

No Goal, No Aim, No Dream

How I wish I can fulfill all 3 conditions above!

Unfortunately, I still have dreams... Much work remains to be done...


I must qualify the context I am talking about is life in general. 


No goal, no aim, no dream - sounds a lot like the Taoist's 无为 (non-control) and Buddhism's 随缘 (act according to conditions).

It even gels with the Abrahamic faiths in surrendering yourself to your maker and accepting God's will.


Big picture say I do; but on the side, do a bit of hedging by having goals, aims, dreams in the tradition of "If I think I can; I can!" or "I am the master of my own fate!"

Don't you see the contradictions?


We often complain about Big Daddy with their goals and KPIs.

Why must we strive to be No.1 in everything? Stress you know?

Why must we rank everything from schools to Olympic sports? You good boy! You bad boy?

Measure this, measure that. You love cold hard facts over how I feel... OK, now you started to listen. I give you the benefit of the doubt this time.

Guess what?

What do we do in our own private lives?

Repeating it to our children is one thing (talk about repeating the sins of the father), but doing it to ourselves!!!???

Pause.  

Pause.

Pause. 

Now, how the hell do I stop dreaming? Valium?





17 comments:

  1. You don't have to have a dream.

    http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/510898/20131003/trending-graduation-speech-tim-minchin-australia-s.htm

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Fat,

      Thanks a lot for the video link!

      I've no clue who he is but it's great to know another comedian who shares a similar outlook ;)

      I've no desire to be a teacher; I rather be a catalyst. But then it's me playing with semantics...

      Still work-in-progress on not having dreams. Baby steps.

      Delete
  2. "No goal, no aim, no dream"...

    Isn't that a goal, an aim or even a dream? =p

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Touche 15HWW!

      The force is strong within you young Jedi ;)

      I am writing to the heathens so I used everyday words.

      If I am talking to you (now I know!) or any else whom I knew is living in the Tao or a fellow Zen traveller, I would not have used the same words.

      I would have asked a question instead and it's on the masthead of this blog:

      Why stand when you can sit? And why sit when you can lie down?

      Would a goal getter be a man of leisure?

      LOL!

      Delete
    2. One Goal. One Aim. One Dream. Be Singapore Man of Leisure.

      How men in Singapore have it?

      No Goal. No Aim. No Dream. Likely to end up as average uncle sitting somewhere without much leisure.

      SMWL.Right? What is 'W'?



      Delete
    3. CW,

      Your definition of "average" is based on the amount of $ we have at retirement - it's an important but still narrow view of retirement.

      That's why I qualify I am referring to life in general - which includes:

      Health - we don't exercise or eat right now but we assume we can do whatever we want once we have $ at retirement.

      Relationships - maybe those people you saw sitting around have $ but no friends? Spend so much time at work thinking colleagues were friends... After retirement found out colleague still have to work even if you financially free!

      Hobbies - If our hobbies are work-related or we no life after work now; guess what happens after retirement?

      Family - Giving material gifts (and holidays) to compensate for time away is the only thing you know, don't be surprise your family members reciprocate by doing the same when you retire. We have lots of $ allowance and toys; but we eat meals alone...

      I can go on and on.

      Should we have more goals instead? And how the hell we have goals on relationships and family? Count the number of likes on our Facebook?

      Who decides who is average anyway? And shouldn't the adjective be happy or not happy instead at retirement? (Oh! I forgot! Counting $ is easier than counting happiness)

      Retirement also want to "compete" like whether our ah boy gets into RI or ACS? My daddy retire with more $ than your daddy!

      LOL!

      Delete
  3. For those in your 40s (and maybe undergoing your philosophical gymnastics like me), I would really like to know your experiences.

    Where you are now, was it because of your goals and plans in your 20s? Worked out as planned?

    Or you have no plans or goals but just stumbled to where you are today?

    Or maybe you like me, have plans and goals in our 20s; but we often strayed from them as there were more interesting distractions that came along?

    ReplyDelete
  4. goal aim and dreams are the enemy of trading!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. the problem is how to get rid of them when comes to trading?

      Delete
    2. coconut,

      Tell me about it!

      I've lost count on the number of times I've been hypnotized by my own price targets (living in the future) that I fail to recognise what the price action (here and now) is telling me...

      Isn't it strange?

      In the beginning, my problem was not having a plan in trading. Then when I have a trading plan with price targets, I discovered my next problem is not letting my profits ride...

      Now it's full circle back to taking only what the market is giving me,

      I think trading and Zen have a lot in common.

      The more I study, the more I think I understand.

      Then suddenly I discover I don't understand anything at all l!!!???

      Start re-learning all over again by discarding what I thought I knew.

      Am I making sense?

      OK, cannot play now. Must prepare to go to work now. I work weekends and holidays. Another day, another dollar earned :)

      Delete
    3. i know when i started with full of the bull shit i set for myself, now i don't anymore or try not to. i just forecast on strategy and observe how the strategy works/don't work throughout the trading timeframe.

      i can't tell you how but for me it just slowly go away and i never think of them as time pass, now i only dream to be myself and no one else. and no aims or goal, just move forward a day at a time, or i try.

      aim goal or dream are unrealistic, but not trading strategy, i spend most of my time on strategy and trading, strategy reenforce trading and trading reenforce strategy, goes on and on and on.

      so don't misunderstand goal/planning with strategy, they are not the same. i don't plan my trades or set goals on it, but i have a solid strategy for executing my trades.

      Delete
    4. chosing a strategy is like chosing an animal on earth, each has strength and weakness, no one is domination (except human haha). or is like playing animal board game, you must use each animal to its full potential.

      most traders uses only one animal to play, can you beat me with animal range from elephan to tiger to even rats?

      so forcast on strategy when comes to trading. it also brings the fun and joy rather than the exitement and pain from profit or loss.

      Delete
    5. coconut,

      Ah! The animal game of our youth! I must try to find it!!!

      I know what you mean. Words fail me too; or rather my vocab is not large enough to describe how I feel and think :(

      Delete
  5. "Or you have no plans or goals but just stumbled to where you are today?"
    Ha! Ha!
    SMOL,
    You are right in a way. i just can't take it as an employee for somebody. And i just stumble into becoming an "OPMI" at the age of 40 years old until now lol!
    Since i can't be an "IAMI" (Inside - Active - Majority - Investor).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. temperament,

      Ha ha! You started your "days of leisure" much earlier than me ;)

      I myself cannot be a business owner too. I did thought of buying a franchise or opening a small retail shop - but that takes too much work...

      I have a bit of "ah sia kia" blood in me even though I am of the peasant class.

      You became an OPMI while I appointed myself as a nano hedge fund manager - sama sama ;)


      temperament, you are in your 60s and life's not so bad for an ITE grad without any goals, aims, and dreams.

      We can nod in understanding without further words - 同道中人

      Delete
    2. Just turned 4-zero. I find myself planning my play schedule far more than work. Thanks to you, I don't feel so alone in play.

      Keep rawking. What a great blog.

      Delete
    3. Thanks for the encouragement Carrie!

      Coming from a veteran blooger like you, it meant a lot :)

      Welcome to the 4-zero club!

      4 more years and I will say bye bye as I will be joining the Hawaii 5-O club ;)

      P.S. Your post: Life is who you love - it struck a chord.

      I say hello to my maternal grandma at Mt Vernon from time to time. I let her know her daughter is doing OK.

      Delete

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