You have to enjoy the journey

Because when you finally get what you’ve been waiting for, it’s not all that.

I just hit my all time goal in the gym, a 225 pound bench press. This is something that, when I started going to the gym, was the end all be all. This was supposed to be the pinnacle, and when I hit it, It was going to be the most ephemeral feeling and my life would be forever different.

And it did feel like that—for 20 seconds. Then I took the 2 plates off and the workout continued as usual.

If I knew that was going to be the reaction I had when I initially set that goal, I would have never tried so hard to achieve it. If all I got was one minute of satisfaction then why would I spend years being consistent, overcoming plateaus, and pushing myself for something so mundane? Well, it’s because the goal was never what drove me. Since I fell in love with the consistency, the grind, the progress, and the people, the goal was never the reason for showing up, and achieving it was just a side effect of doing so.

The point of setting a goal should never be to motivate you to reach it. Rather, it should provide direction in which to point your effort. When climbing a mountain, the moment of reaching the summit isn’t what keeps you going. It’s the cool breeze, the satisfying burn in your calves, and the memories you make during the climb that keeps you going. The peak is only there so that when you look up, you know you’re still headed in the right direction.

This pattern appears again and again, and is why you should never wish for something you aren’t willing to commit to the process for. When trying to be great at anything, be it making money, sports, programming, or a video game, your goal is simply there to align your daily efforts. Those efforts, though, have to stem from a love of the journey.