Is It A Luxury To Pursue Your Dream?

There is a wide contrast between your dream and what makes you happy

I recently saw a clip of Jordan Peterson where the person asked him,

What should the people do who don’t have the luxury to follow their dreams?

His answer was impeccable.

It is a luxury to do what makes you happy, it is a moral obligation to pursue what is meaningful for you

What an answer. It makes you think.

There is a wide contrast between your dream and what makes you happy.

Think of it this way. Your dream is the destination that ultimately paves the way for your meaning. They give you meaning.

There are going to be instances when we are going to have to do things that we don’t want to do when we chase our dream.

In some cases, we will get slapped across the face but we will be forced to turn the other cheek and take it again.

Are you willing to endure the embarrassment because that is the risk associated with chasing your dream?

Rich people do what makes them happy, the people who throw their hands up in the sky and yell, “I made it!” They can use the money to buy their happiness.

But the thing is, even Elon Musk hasn’t made it. Of course, we might think that is greedy or whatever, but his goal was never to be a 3 figure billionaire. It was to save the future of humanity.

He has not accomplished it yet. He is still in pursuit of his dream.

That is what makes him special.

So what does moral obligation mean?

To me, it is a guess.

You think this is what I believe the universe has for me.

You may be right, you may be wrong. That is not the point.

The moral obligation in your thinking comes from the rolling of the dice. Giving it a go, seeing where it goes.

If you don’t fulfil that obligation, you have a massive hole the size of regret. You think, maybe this was my calling.

But here is the thing, it is never too late.

80-year-old and 90-year-old people end up achieving their dreams at such an old age. That screams this.

People give up too quick in my opinion.

The moral obligation also comes from nature’s debt upon you. It gave you a gift, it is your duty to use it for good use.

Amongst the many things your intuition rubs on your head where you can point the finger and think, maybe this is what I was destined to do, one is bound to connect.

So by the end of your life, it is your obligation to find that gift of yours.

If history is any indication, people who make an effort in that direction generally stumble upon it rather quickly. It is nature’s reward for the hard-working.

How do you know your meaning?

Everyone strives for meaning. Otherwise so many questions come to mind.

If all this is meaningless, why be civil? Why not go into a violent frenzy. Why not spend every waking moment stomping on each other, taking advantage of everyone we can take the advantage of? Why must we be born with a moral compass at all then?

After all, it is harder to be good than to be evil.

It is due to this I believe that there most definitely must be a reason, meaning for everyone.

What I also believe in, however, is that we must find that meaning. If you sit in one place all the time, you will rot.

Take the example of aeroplanes. They are built to fly. While crashes are disastrous and occasional, staying on the ground is more dangerous for aeroplanes than flying. They cause wear and tear.

For the pursuit of meaning, it is my thinking that tragic moments in life contribute more than the good and jolly moments.

The existence of mediocrity defines the existence of greatness. Similarly, the existence of bad defines what is good.

Not only do the tragic moments make you stronger by testing you, but they also make the experience of life unique on its own.

After all, what is art if it doesn’t come from within you?

Good moments early in life define memories. Later tragic moments come in to build your character so that you are not living in your own bubble of false positivity. When the next good moments come, you appreciate them more, but this time, they represent a win.

They represent a stronger person.

Your story is your meaning. Life can not be meaningless.

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