I proceed my yearly goal planning by posing myself with the following question: what do I want?

It’s a hard question. What do I want?

Do I want love?
Do I want success?
Do I want a high paying salary?
Do I want abs?
Do I want bigger deltoids?

I deliberated for some time.

I concluded that I want peace. Ironically, the way I’ve positioned the question poisons the well slightly. That is, placing the emphasis on what I want or what I desire fundamentally disagrees with seeking peace.

As I understand it, peace is uncovered. I have everything I need to be content, to feel fulfilled, to feel at peace. To assert that I want something implies I don’t have everything I need. To assert that I want peace is keeping me from being at peace.

Okay, well, great…I guess? What can I do with this realization? Am I going to drop everything and retreat to a forest? Not quite.

This realization helps me navigate my desires with intention. I know that choosing to chase a desire contends my own peace. In other words, as I pick up a desire I should ask myself: am I willing to let this affect my peace?

I need to do something this year, so which desires have I settled on?

The desire for education, love, fitness, creativity.

Ironically, this reflection sprouted as I was setting some goals for my own fitness. The desire for bigger deltoids and more visible abs is certainly real, among many other things (upper chest, forearms, traps, quads). Perhaps I’ll share my plan in a future post to encourage accountability.