On Abundance And Goals

It is painful to go through life wishing for something you can never seem to attain. This is the nature of all external pursuits. The default answer is almost always "No," and turning it into a "Yes" requires significant effort.

Consider the example of losing weight. Depending on how much you are trying to lose and your starting point, it may take anywhere from a couple of months to an entire year to achieve your goal. If you want to maintain muscle mass while eating less, you must also lift weights. All of this requires planning, discipline, and patience. Many look at such an endeavor and feel discouraged.

But if you instead frame the goal as a matter of inner transformation, and begin acting in alignment with the person you wish to become, you will bypass discouragement entirely. It is not a matter of outer progress but of inner self-efficacy and self-esteem. Instead of trying to lose weight, decide to be healthy. Deep down, you know it is good to be healthy, so start acting according to that belief. If you live in a way that is healthy, then you are healthy, and your body will eventually reflect that truth.

Another example: you wish to be more helpful. You should not seek gratitude from others as your incentive. You act helpfully because you know it is good to be helpful. I recently started doing chores around the house even though my parents never asked me to. I do it for myself first and foremost.

Follow this path and a sense of abundance will swell within your soul. You will grow into a larger person, and the world will begin to notice; in time, opportunities will fall into your lap. But if, on the other hand, you seek to cheat—to circumvent the process and take from the world what you have not earned—you will encounter failure after failure until you finally learn the lesson.