Friday, January 10, 2014

Goal Oriented, Process Oriented, or Both

I just read this really interesting article that touched on the concept of process oriented: http://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/01/10/sports/mikaela-shiffrins-swift-if-unplanned-ascent-to-world-champion.html?_r=0&referrer=

A lightbulb went off in my head. I am process oriented. As I think about Everest, and the metaphor that is for accomplishing any goal in life I realize it has never been about standing on the summit. I have known that for some time. That is part of the reason I am choosing to climb without bottled oxygen despite it being significantly (3x-25x) harder. That is part of the reason I am only getting there close to 10 years after deciding I wanted to go. 

It is the reason I started a company and failed. It is the reason I race marathons, and often fall apart at the end. Success, reaching the goal, is not why we do these things, we do them to see what is possible. We put ourselves in position to take advantage of an opportunity. 

The process versus a goal? Is it really one or the other? Without a goal what are you processing? This is a deep realization for me. I've always said I was very goal oriented, yet I have also said that reaching the goal isn't as important as knowing I tried. That is why I was vegan for 73 days.

I need to think about this some more.

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