Living inside your goals.

Destination addiction is the belief that what we have accomplished is never enough — that we have to move on to the next thing immediately.

You earn your bachelor's, and then you want a master's. You earn your master's, and then you want a doctorate. You get the job, and then you want the promotion.

There is nothing wrong with pursuing any of it. Goals give us direction, motivation, and purpose. The problem begins when we convince ourselves that life will finally be better — that we will finally be happy — once we reach the next destination.

When we live that way, we never fully live in the present.

Maybe the way to reframe destination addiction is to learn to enjoy what we already have. More than that, to let ourselves appreciate that we accomplished something we once deeply wanted.

You may be living inside one of your old goals right now.

The job you are looking past today may be the job you prayed for years ago. The degree that no longer seems like enough may be the one you stayed up all night for, sacrificed for, worked hard to earn.

Yes, let's keep pursuing our goals. Let's keep growing and dreaming and reaching. But let's not get trapped in the belief that the next achievement is the one that will finally make us happy, because that chase does not end.

We can pursue what is ahead and still appreciate where we are. Some part of the life you are living right now was once only a hope.

Which of your old prayers are you living inside right now?

Here, I made this. My gift to you, for taking the time to read.

Images are from my imagination, generated by AI. Writing is all me.