STEP 2
RESEARCH IT
Once you know what you would love to do, research that activity. Learn all the details necessary to achieve your goals. Learn everything you can about the past, present, and future of your goals in order to begin to chart a path to achieving them. Not only will this enlighten you about what it is that you love, but it will help you take advantage of the lessons learned by those who have come before you.
PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE
Studying the past of what you would love to do will give you insight into how to be successful at it. Whatever your goals may be, it is very likely that someone has either achieved them or failed in the attempt. Wisdom tells us to evaluate the similarities and differences and all the variables that have determined success or failure in the past. There is an old saying: “You can’t know where you’re going until you know where you’ve been.” In other words, the past is a guide to the future.
Studying the present of what you would love to do will show you things that you need to know to succeed that were not available or required in the past. You may find out that there are others with the same goal as you. You may find resources that will help you, or you may find a job within your chosen field. Whatever you find will help you do what you love. Staying current is vital, as it ensures that you are present in your goals. We can lose focus thinking about where we want to be and become frustrated that we are not there. That frustration can lead us to lose sight of what we love that made us want to achieve our goal in the first place. We’ve all witnessed this phenomenon. Once the fulfillment of doing what you love is gone, it will become a chore. Being consistently present in what you love prevents this from happening.
Looking into the future helps you stay on the path that you have set for yourself. We must all remain conscious of our happiness as well as of our end goals. Doing what you love daily is one of the greatest contributors to happiness. Having the end goal in mind and constantly working toward it ensures your happiness every day. The future can provide all the things that you desire that can aid in your happiness. Material things will not be the center of your happiness, but doing the work you love to do and being happy in this way will result in your obtaining the material things that life has to offer as well. It is not wrong to desire a house, a car, or other material things when you are thinking about doing the things that you love. Problems arise when you look to material things as a major source of happiness.
HOW TO RESEARCH
The best method of researching what you would love to do is by starting with the “who, what, when, where, and why” structure. Who has achieved this goal before you? What did they do to achieve it? When did they do it, and what was the timeframe? Where was this done? Lastly, why did they do it? The deeper you look into these questions, the more similarities and differences you will find with others who have come before you. If you find similarities that you can apply, apply them. If you notice differences that you cannot apply, don’t try to apply them, but be conscious of the distinctive differences.
Research only serves as a platform from which to do whatever it is that you love in the most efficient manner possible. Do not think that research will tell you exactly what you need to do to succeed. Everyone’s happiness does not lie in precisely the same place. Although we may share the same general goals in relation to what makes us happy, our reasons for working toward these goals may be different. Someone else’s plan for how they obtained their happiness may help, but it will not necessarily be the be-all and end-all of the plan you should create.
CONCLUSION
It is wise for us to study and research as much as possible in order to know everything about our goals. As we look into the past, present, and future, we will be able to find similarities and differences that will aid greatly in our journey. We must remember that research serves as a platform, but it will not entirely solve the problem of how to find happiness. We must develop our plan on our own.
The purpose of doing research is to understand the most efficient way to obtain your goals and happiness. It is not to tell you exactly what to do. Be mindful of this so that you remain creative. If you do not, you will lean on your research to tell you everything you think you should know. No one else can give you a plan for your own happiness. The information can only aid you in creating an effective plan more efficiently. Fine-tuning your knowledge and skills through studying and research will undoubtedly help you discover the inner greatness that you’ve always possessed.
