Everybody talks about getting ahead.
What I want to know is… ahead of what? Of who? And why? To what end?
Because, it turns out, “getting ahead” is not only super vague, it’s also just not a great goal.
The problem with getting ahead is that it’s a zero-sum game. There’s only one winner.
And in this game, even the winners are losers. How many of us want to be remembered as the person who spent their whole life striving to get ahead of everyone else?
This may come as a shock, but you don’t have to participate in this game—constantly battling against the competition (which, by the way, is everyone else in the world).
Seriously. You could work less. Spend less. Sleep more. You can quit your job and start something new. Instead of trying to get ahead, you could try to get clear. You know… on your values, your goals, and your deepest desires.
Maybe nothing new would happen. But maybe, just maybe, you’d discover that “getting ahead” was never what you wanted in the first place.
-Carl
P.S. As always, if you want to use this sketch, you can buy it here.
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