Goal

Older people constantly tell those who are younger than them that one must have a goal, that one must have a purpose in life. Parents tell their children; teachers tell their students. Thus continues the long chain of reminders about the importance of having a goal.

It is not because we lack goals that many of us fail to reach them. Rather, it is because the obstacles and setbacks  encountered along the journey drain our self-confidence. It is because we turn back halfway. It is because the despair that we will never reach our goal takes root in our hearts. Perhaps it is because, the farther we walk, the farther away the goal seems to appear. Yet, one must have a goal. A single setback should never make us abandon it.

When we examine the lives of those whom we believe have found their goal and attained success, we realize that they did not achieve it with ease. Instead, they were people who struggled, toiled and shed blood and sweat in pursuit of their goal. No one has ever reached a goal in a single stroke. Nor has there been one identical path to success for everyone. There may, at times, have been similarities, but they may have reached their goals through many different paths. Those who believe that reaching the goal alone is what matters may choose any path. But those who consider the path to be as important as the goal cannot adopt every possible means to attain it.

Many things in our surroundings can divert us from our goals. For a student whose primary goal should be education, mobile phones, television and the internet may sometimes become obstacles. For a person who wishes to live free from alcohol, even the signboard of a bar may become a hindrance to achieving that goal. We live in a society filled with countless influences that, in different ways, tempt us to turn away from our goals. In such a society, the most important thing is to live without losing one’s sense of purpose.

Having a goal is by no means a trivial matter, nor is attaining it easy. Even those who have a clear goal may have to face many obstacles before reaching it. A goal is not something that can be accomplished all at once. Have you ever watched an archer? So many of their arrows miss the mark. Yet they continue their efforts. 

In the end, perhaps it is the very last arrow that strikes the centre of the target. That is exactly what we, too, should do. Many of our attempts may have failed; we may have gone wrong somewhere along the way. Even so, we must continue trying. The final attempt may be the one that leads us to our goal.