You probably heard it before. "If you want to achieve your goals you should work hard and be dedicated." But sometimes reaching your goals could also mean going through pain and agony for five years. But at the same time, the same people will tell you to "enjoy life and live it to the fullest". That kind of contradicts itself. Because as I mentioned. Sometimes reaching your goals could mean going through blood sweat and tears. Even to the point where you just have no time for fun and games. So should we really enjoy life at all times? How much work is too much work. Why do we need a balance between work and enjoyment. And why does unstabalizing it make us depressed? How much work can we do before burning out? I read a part where people compared the meaning of life to eating cake. You eat the cake because you enjoy it. But there's no objective point to eating it because after a day you probably forgot about eating it. So in an atheistic point of view. Do we live just to enjoy life? Because once we die our existence will not matter anymore to anyone. Maybe for a decade but after that? Not really. The universe is too big for anything to matter anyway. Unless god were to be the truth. And we live to praise him. In that case there would be an objective meaning to life. Anyway, I could go on about this for days but this sums most of it. I wonder how you guys feel about that.
Hey, Just do what you enjoy but remember prioritising things are also very important. I mean I enjoy playing games but we have to be realistic and harsh to ourselves. In the past I've asked myself, "am I good enough to be a pro gamer?" The answer was no. Then I asked, "then would I put in all the effort to be become one?" It was a hard getting to an answer but again I concluded with a no. Although staying happy and enjoying what you do is very important, I reckon prioritising things along with balancing out your lifestyle is just as important. For example, if you were to spend years of your life enjoying your hobbies, yes it could make you happy. However I am fairly certain that other concerns will kick in. For instance, say you really enjoy playing games. After a while you could be low on money or perhaps you could be stressed out as you become unhealthy from sitting in front of the computer all day. I know this may sound like an extreme example, but in my opinion every human being in the world will face concerns at some point regardless of how they live their lives. It's just the matter of minimising concerns and perhaps staying optimisitc so that concerns may eventually approach you as an opportunity. I haven't been through too much in my life, but what I've said above is my opinion when it comes to the meaning of life. Simply enjoy what you do, but have a goal. Without a goal you'll most likely be stressed out in the long run and you may regret the times you've gone through. If you think you'll be happy even when it comes to the point with bad health and very little money, then by all means go for it, but I'm pretty sure that's not what you'll want in life. Just think of the consequences of every move and I reckon you'll be able to balance your life out more. I personally love gaming, but knowing that it'll be very difficult to become a gamer, and also knowing that gaming is simply a hobby for me, I've continued with my education. Well I'm here now studying Finance at a university and I'm confident in saying that I enjoy my life. Although I do not love what I study as much as my hobbies, I'm happy to be given a chance to do what I currently do, and hopefully will stay positive at all times in the future. Just be thankful at all times and the things you don't really like now, could become an interest. Or at least something that won't stress you out. What I've said was completely a subjective point of view and you may disagree. But I hope you realise you're not the only one in this situation as I've been through it too. Find what you enjoy and challenge yourself by being harsh to yourself at the same time I better get some sleep as I have a lecture to attend tomorrow haha Anyways that's all from me. Good night!
Yeah our existence may not matter once were dead but our legacy and work still lives on. I listen to countless dead artists and am thankful for them to have existed and for me to be listening to their music today. A lot of life is subjective and I find waking up, being thankful for what I have and to be living in better conditions than most of the world, to be really humbling yet uplifting(as contradictory as it sounds) You really just have to control your life. As for balance in life, I feel being unbalanced makes us depressed because of the lack of substance in ones life. Whenever I go out with friends, workout, even when I clean up my house, I feel a sense of accomplishment that pushes me further to better myself. When I don't however, I feel down, lazy and depressed. Everyday you learn, and everyday is a new day. You create your purpose.
This reminds me of a parable involving a Mexican fisherman and an investment banker. Spoiler An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied, “only a little while. The American then asked why didn’t he stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs. The American then asked, “but what do you do with the rest of your time?” The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siestas with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine, and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life.” The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing, and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City, where you will run your expanding enterprise.” The Mexican fisherman asked, “But, how long will this all take?” To which the American replied, “15 – 20 years.” “But what then?” Asked the Mexican. The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions!” “Millions – then what?” The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.” I guess it comes down to how one likes to spend free time, and there's no categorical right or wrong. Some might like simple, low-stress activities (like watching TV, hanging out, or playing Royals). Others might have sights on more expensive or exclusive activities (like driving sports cars, attending fancy banquets, golf, etc) in which success—at least on some levels—could be a stronger prerequisite. All depends on what one values, and one's willingness to make the sacrifices to get there.
