Daydreams, Reflection, and Action

It is fun to daydream. You can fantasize about all sorts of things. You can come up with all kinds of new ideas or wishes. The problem with all of these wishes comes when we have to fulfill them. It is then that we face the hard work of turning dreams into reality.

As Peter Drucker put it, "Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work." Our lives are filled with good intentions. In our fantasy lives, everything is perfect. There is no adversity. Everything is a success easily gained. But we know this is bullshit.

Then, there is the flip side. You put forth a lot of action. You bust your ass. You reach for the elusive prize. And once you have it in hand, you realize there really was nothing to it at all. You experience the anticlimax. Hell, it can even be a bit depressing. I discovered this when I finished college or got my first decent paying job. There really is no thrill in the conquest. Maybe others will disagree with me, but I find that winning is not nearly as much fun as just playing. If you've ever blown someone out on a competition, you will know what I am talking about.

I don't like to daydream. I just like to work. I like to create and make things and get things done. I make a lot of plans and even keep them in a black notebook along with my reading list, addresses, etc. I will never accomplish all the things I have written in that book. But I like to have options in case one plan fails I can resort to another project instead of becoming despondent.

I also don't like to spend a lot of time reflecting over what I have done. For instance, I rarely read my own blog. Most of the time, I catch mistakes and correct them, but I don't get much satisfaction from something I have already written. I'm happiest usually in the process of writing something.

I like to live in this zone of action. I like to follow the principle A.B.D.--Always Be Doing. Usually, that doing is nothing more than goofing off which is anything that doesn't involved getting paid or tending to household affairs. I just like to zone in on some project and then make it happen. When the project ends, I am a little bit sad that it is over with. So, I reload another project and start working again.

I've said this before, and I'm saying it again. Happiness is always having something to do. It isn't about money or love or any of that shit. Happiness is losing yourself in purposeful activity. If you focus on money or success or the "prize," you will find yourself utterly miserable. Usually, these things come to the people who simply do what they love doing.

Lately, I have forgotten this lesson. That is why happiness is so frustrating. We forget what it is that makes us happy, so we have to remember. There is no happiness in daydreaming or in reflection. There is only happiness in action. Always Be Doing.

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