Map

let's talk about life goal

Clarifying and Choosing a Life Goal

Explain: Types of life goals

Types of Life Goals

Explain: Achievement goals: attaining a specific outcome (career success, wealth...

What Achievement Goals Are — Explained

Explain: Developmental goals: becoming a certain kind of person (wise, compassio...

Developmental Goals — Becoming a Certain Kind of Person

Explain: Relational goals: deep, ongoing commitments to others (parenting, frien...

Relational Goals — What They Are and Why They Matter

Explain: Experiential goals: pursuing particular kinds of experiences (adventure...

Experiential Life Goals — What They Are and Why They Matter

Explain: Mixed goals: most meaningful goals combine elements above.

Why “Mixed Goals” Are Often Most Meaningful

Explain: How to choose a life goal (practical steps)

How to Choose a Life Goal — Practical Steps

Explain: Reflect on values: what do you find intrinsically important? (honesty, ...

Reflecting on Values — Identifying What You Find Intrinsically Important

Explain: Inventory strengths and passions: what energizes you and where you reli...

What “Inventory strengths and passions” Means — A Concise Guide

Explain: Consider trade-offs: goals constrain other options; note costs (time, r...

Why “Consider Trade-offs” Matters — How Goals Limit Options and Create Costs

Explain: Test short-term: try projects or roles that approximate the goal before...

Why “Test Short-Term” Matters — and How to Do It

Explain: Make it revisable: treat the goal as a hypothesis you revise with exper...

Treat Your Life Goal as a Revisable Hypothesis

Explain: Normative guidance (how to evaluate goals)

How to Evaluate Life Goals — Normative Guidance Explained

Explain: Coherence: is the goal consistent with your deeper values and identity?

Coherence — Aligning Your Goal with Who You Are

Explain: Realism: is it achievable given constraints, or is it wildly unrealisti...

Realism — Checking Whether a Life Goal Is Achievable

Explain: Contribution: does pursuing it contribute to your well-being and to oth...

What “Contribution” Means in Choosing a Life Goal

Explain: Sustainability: can you maintain pursuit without burning out?

What “Sustainability” Means for a Life Goal

Explain: Living with a life goal

Living with a Life Goal

Explain: Break it into manageable aims and milestones.

Breaking a Life Goal into Manageable Aims and Milestones

Explain: Build habits and environments that make progress likely.

Making Progress Inevitable — Habits and Environments

Explain: Keep a reflective practice (journaling, mentor conversations) to correc...

Why a Reflective Practice Helps You Correct Course

Explain: Balance commitment and openness—persistence matters, but so does learni...

Commitment and Openness — Why Both Matter

Explain: Common philosophical perspectives

Common Philosophical Perspectives on Life Goals

Explain: Aristotelian: eudaimonia—living excellently according to one’s nature; ...

Aristotelian Eudaimonia — Living Well by Fulfilling One’s Nature

Explain: Utilitarian: choose goals that maximize overall well-being (Mill, Sidgw...

Utilitarianism and Choosing Life Goals

Explain: Existentialist: create meaning through chosen commitments in an indiffe...

Existentialist Meaning — Choice, Commitment, and an Indifferent World

Explain: Stoic: focus on what’s within your control—virtue as primary goal (Epic...

The Stoic View — Control, Virtue, and a Tranquil Aim

Explain: Work through a short exercise to identify candidate life goals for you.

Exercise: Identify Candidate Life Goals

Explain: Evaluate a particular goal you’re considering.

How to Evaluate a Particular Life Goal

Explain: Translate a chosen goal into a 1-, 5-, and 10-year plan.

Translating a Chosen Life Goal into 1-, 5-, and 10-Year Plans

Explain: Types of life goals

Types of Life Goals — A Clear Breakdown

Explain: Achievement goals: attaining a specific outcome (career success, wealth...

What Achievement Goals Are — and What They Mean

Explain: Developmental goals: becoming a certain kind of person (wise, compassio...

What Developmental Life Goals Mean — Becoming a Certain Kind of Person

Explain: Relational goals: deep, ongoing commitments to others (parenting, frien...

Relational Goals — What They Are and Why They Matter

Explain: Experiential goals: pursuing particular kinds of experiences (adventure...

Experiential Life Goals — What They Are and Why They Matter

Explain: Mixed goals: most meaningful goals combine elements above.

Why Most Meaningful Life Goals Are “Mixed Goals”

Explain: How to choose a life goal (practical steps)

How to Choose a Life Goal — Practical Steps

Explain: Reflect on values: what do you find intrinsically important? (honesty, ...

What “Reflect on Values” Means — A Brief Explanation

Explain: Inventory strengths and passions: what energizes you and where you reli...

Inventorying Strengths and Passions — What It Means and How to Do It

Explain: Consider trade-offs: goals constrain other options; note costs (time, r...

Why “Consider Trade-offs” Matters — How Choosing a Life Goal Limits Options and ...

Explain: Test short-term: try projects or roles that approximate the goal before...

Why “Test Short-Term” Before Committing to a Life Goal

Explain: Make it revisable: treat the goal as a hypothesis you revise with exper...

Treating Your Life Goal as a Revisable Hypothesis

Explain: Normative guidance (how to evaluate goals)

Normative Guidance for Evaluating Life Goals

Explain: Coherence: is the goal consistent with your deeper values and identity?

What “Coherence” Means for a Life Goal

Explain: Realism: is it achievable given constraints, or is it wildly unrealisti...

What "Realism" Means When Choosing a Life Goal

Explain: Contribution: does pursuing it contribute to your well-being and to oth...

"Contribution" as a Criterion for Choosing a Life Goal

Explain: Sustainability: can you maintain pursuit without burning out?

What “Sustainability” Means for a Life Goal — and How to Practice It

Explain: Living with a life goal

Living with a Life Goal

Explain: Break it into manageable aims and milestones.

Turning a Life Goal into Manageable Aims and Milestones

Explain: Build habits and environments that make progress likely.

Build Habits and Environments That Make Progress Likely — What That Means and Ho...

Explain: Keep a reflective practice (journaling, mentor conversations) to correc...

Why Keep a Reflective Practice to Correct Course

Explain: Balance commitment and openness—persistence matters, but so does learni...

Balancing Commitment and Openness — Why Both Matter

Explain: Common philosophical perspectives

Common philosophical perspectives on life goals

Explain: Aristotelian: eudaimonia—living excellently according to one’s nature; ...

Aristotelian Eudaimonia — Living Well According to Your Nature

Explain: Utilitarian: choose goals that maximize overall well-being (Mill, Sidgw...

Utilitarianism and Choosing Life Goals

Explain: Existentialist: create meaning through chosen commitments in an indiffe...

Existentialism — Choosing Meaning in an Indifferent World

Explain: Stoic: focus on what’s within your control—virtue as primary goal (Epic...

Stoicism — Control, Virtue, and a Life Goal

Explain: Work through a short exercise to identify candidate life goals for you.

Short Exercise to Identify Candidate Life Goals

Explain: Evaluate a particular goal you’re considering.

How to Evaluate a Particular Life Goal

Explain: Translate a chosen goal into a 1-, 5-, and 10-year plan.

Translating a Life Goal into 1-, 5-, and 10-Year Plans

let's talk about industry

Choosing an Industry as a Life Goal

Explain: Clarify your deeper values and aims

Clarify Your Deeper Values and Aims

Explain: Ask: Why do I want to work in an industry? (security, creativity, impac...

Why Ask “Why do I Want to Work in an Industry?”

Explain: Prefer industries that align with core values; misalignment causes burn...

Why Value-Industry Alignment Prevents Burnout

Explain: Match the industry to your strengths and personality

Matching an Industry to Your Strengths and Personality

Explain: Skills: technical, social, managerial, creative—choose industries where...

Why Match Your Dominant Skills to an Industry

Explain: Personality fit: risk-tolerant people may thrive in startups/finance; d...

Why Personality Fit Matters — Risk Tolerance vs. Steadiness in Industry Choice

Explain: Consider impact and meaning

What “Consider Impact and Meaning” Actually Means

Explain: Some industries offer direct social impact (healthcare, education, rene...

Paths to Impact — Direct Service vs. Scaled Influence

Explain: If impact matters, evaluate how roles within the industry create change...

How Roles Differ in Their Capacity to Produce Impact

Explain: Evaluate economic prospects and stability

How to Evaluate Economic Prospects and Stability for an Industry

Explain: Research growth trends, automation risk, regulation, geographic concent...

What to Check — Growth Trends, Automation Risk, Regulation, and Geographic Conce...

Explain: Balance passion with realistic earning potential if financial security ...

Balancing Passion and Earning Potential

Explain: Think in roles and trajectories, not just labels

Think in Roles and Trajectories, Not Just Labels — What That Means and Why It Ma...

Explain: “Tech” or “finance” are broad. Identify specific roles (R&D engineer, p...

From Broad Industry Labels to Specific Roles and Career Ladders

Explain: Test before committing

Test Before Committing — How to Try an Industry Without Betting Your Life

Explain: Do short-term experiments: internships, freelance projects, information...

Why and How to Do Short-Term Experiments Before Committing to an Industry

Explain: Small experiments reveal day-to-day realities better than abstract desc...

Why Small Experiments Beat Abstract Descriptions

Explain: Build transferable skills

Build Transferable Skills — What It Means and How to Do It

Explain: Communication, problem solving, project management, and learning agilit...

Why Transferable Skills Let You Switch Industries

Explain: Plan milestones and review points

Plan Milestones and Review Points — What It Means and How to Do It

Explain: Set 1-, 3-, and 10-year goals (skills to acquire, roles to reach, impac...

Planning with 1-, 3-, and 10‑Year Goals — A Practical Explanation

Explain: Accept trade-offs

Accept Trade-offs — Why and How to Decide What to Give Up

Explain: Every industry imposes constraints (hours, ethics, location). Be explic...

Recognizing and Choosing the Trade-offs an Industry Requires

Explain: Philosophical framing: treat industry as instrument, not identity

Industry as Instrument, Not Identity — A Philosophical Explanation

Explain: Anchor identity in values and projects rather than a single label; this...

Why Anchoring Identity in Values and Projects Beats Identifying with an Industry...

Explain: Alain de Botton, The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work (on meaning in work)

What Alain de Botton Means by "The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work"

Explain: Cal Newport, So Good They Can’t Ignore You (on skill and career capital...

Cal Newport’s So Good They Can’t Ignore You — Core Idea Explained

Explain: Adam Smith, The Theory of Moral Sentiments (for thinking about work, so...

Why Adam Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments Matters for Thinking About Work,...