Member-only story
What to Glean From the Goals You Didn’t Achieve
They may have not been the right goals in the first place
I recently came across an old list of goals I’d written years ago. While it felt good to see that I’d accomplished several of the milestones I’d listed — I co-wrote a book! And it got published! — I was deflated to see all the things that I’d let fall by the wayside.
Sure, some goals had simply been outgrown. I don’t actually want to live in New York City anymore, so it’s okay that I don’t. And truly, I no longer desire “the Rachel” haircut the way 20-year-old me did. Goals, like hairdos, should change and evolve with us.
But a couple of those unfulfilled goals still stung.
For example: Growing up, I always knew I wanted to be a singer. A crowning achievement of my teen years was singing the national anthem at prestigious (to a 15-year-old) events like high school basketball games. When college rolled around, I enrolled in my local state university and optimistically dove into a classical/opera-focused vocal music performance major. My logic: I sing. This is singing. I was going to be a professional singer! Great!
Fast forward to today: I am decidedly not a professional singer. And seeing a reminder of my failure right there on the page bothered me enough that I…
