Drive, Bored, Why?

You have nailed financial security, that is great.
Now do something positive for the world that will last, something only your talents might provide.
What this is, you have to find out yourseld. Nobody can decide that for you.

Most guys never aquire the ambition to find or understand what their grail might be or lack the strength to last.

Luckily, there’s another path called offspring.
The default aim for the majority of men and 99% of all women.

Many find happiness with just being a great dad - it’s a respectable accomplishment and frankly, there aren’t many around.
Curiously, the perils along that path may be way scarier (chosing the wrong genes to couple with) and can bite your ass bigtime.

While traveling the path, it’s imperative you aquire self-respect and true understanding of yourself, and to a degree, of humanity.
Without that, you might never be truly content.

Beware of religion and ideology.
Think of them as honey-smelling traps for foolish souls.

Good luck.
-S.

I hear you HG. I think these words may give you some insight…

“Its not about the destination, its about the journey”
-theBird, 1999.

Oh, and spend some of your hard earned cash on supps…preferably from this site

/ shameless plug.

Get huge?

[quote]theBird wrote:
I hear you HG. I think these words may give you some insight…

“Its not about the destination, its about the journey”
-theBird, 1999 [/quote]

tweet tweet

“What’s the point” I think everyone asks themselves that at one time or another.

For a lot of people it’s kids.

Or maybe there is no point.

Find purpose for a while, get bored, find another purpose, get bored, find another purpose…

Drinking helps.

I think this goes as far back as Herodotus:

“Oh! Croesus,” replied the other, “thou askedst a question concerning the condition of man, of one who knows that the power above us is full of jealousy, and fond of troubling our lot. A long life gives one to witness much, and experience much oneself, that one would not choose. Seventy years I regard as the limit of the life of man. In these seventy years are contained, without reckoning intercalary months, twenty-five thousand and two hundred days. Add an intercalary month to every other year, that the seasons may come round at the right time, and there will be, besides the seventy years, thirty-five such months, making an addition of one thousand and fifty days. The whole number of the days contained in the seventy years will thus be twenty-six thousand two hundred and fifty, whereof not one but will produce events unlike the rest. Hence man is wholly accident. For thyself, oh! Croesus, I see that thou art wonderfully rich, and art the lord of many nations; but with respect to that whereon thou questionest me, I have no answer to give, until I hear that thou hast closed thy life happily. For assuredly he who possesses great store of riches is no nearer happiness than he who has what suffices for his daily needs, unless it so hap that luck attend upon him, and so he continue in the enjoyment of all his good things to the end of life. For many of the wealthiest men have been unfavoured of fortune, and many whose means were moderate have had excellent luck. Men of the former class excel those of the latter but in two respects; these last excel the former in many. The wealthy man is better able to content his desires, and to bear up against a sudden buffet of calamity. The other has less ability to withstand these evils (from which, however, his good luck keeps him clear), but he enjoys all these following blessings: he is whole of limb, a stranger to disease, free from misfortune, happy in his children, and comely to look upon. If, in addition to all this, he end his life well, he is of a truth the man of whom thou art in search, the man who may rightly be termed happy. Call him, however, until he die, not happy but fortunate. Scarcely, indeed, can any man unite all these advantages: as there is no country which contains within it all that it needs, but each, while it possesses some things, lacks others, and the best country is that which contains the most; so no single human being is complete in every respect- something is always lacking. He who unites the greatest number of advantages, and retaining them to the day of his death, then dies peaceably, that man alone, sire, is, in my judgment, entitled to bear the name of ‘happy.’ But in every matter it behoves us to mark well the end: for oftentimes God gives men a gleam of happiness, and then plunges them into ruin.”

Tldr: Call no man happy until he is dead.

[quote]groo wrote:
I think this goes as far back as Herodotus:

“Oh! Croesus,” replied the other, “thou askedst a question concerning the condition of man, of one who knows that the power above us is full of jealousy, and fond of troubling our lot. A long life gives one to witness much, and experience much oneself, that one would not choose. Seventy years I regard as the limit of the life of man. In these seventy years are contained, without reckoning intercalary months, twenty-five thousand and two hundred days. Add an intercalary month to every other year, that the seasons may come round at the right time, and there will be, besides the seventy years, thirty-five such months, making an addition of one thousand and fifty days. The whole number of the days contained in the seventy years will thus be twenty-six thousand two hundred and fifty, whereof not one but will produce events unlike the rest. Hence man is wholly accident. For thyself, oh! Croesus, I see that thou art wonderfully rich, and art the lord of many nations; but with respect to that whereon thou questionest me, I have no answer to give, until I hear that thou hast closed thy life happily. For assuredly he who possesses great store of riches is no nearer happiness than he who has what suffices for his daily needs, unless it so hap that luck attend upon him, and so he continue in the enjoyment of all his good things to the end of life. For many of the wealthiest men have been unfavoured of fortune, and many whose means were moderate have had excellent luck. Men of the former class excel those of the latter but in two respects; these last excel the former in many. The wealthy man is better able to content his desires, and to bear up against a sudden buffet of calamity. The other has less ability to withstand these evils (from which, however, his good luck keeps him clear), but he enjoys all these following blessings: he is whole of limb, a stranger to disease, free from misfortune, happy in his children, and comely to look upon. If, in addition to all this, he end his life well, he is of a truth the man of whom thou art in search, the man who may rightly be termed happy. Call him, however, until he die, not happy but fortunate. Scarcely, indeed, can any man unite all these advantages: as there is no country which contains within it all that it needs, but each, while it possesses some things, lacks others, and the best country is that which contains the most; so no single human being is complete in every respect- something is always lacking. He who unites the greatest number of advantages, and retaining them to the day of his death, then dies peaceably, that man alone, sire, is, in my judgment, entitled to bear the name of ‘happy.’ But in every matter it behoves us to mark well the end: for oftentimes God gives men a gleam of happiness, and then plunges them into ruin.”

Tldr: Call no man happy until he is dead.[/quote]

Damn I’m starting to like you.

kill yourself.
Not really; join the army instead. It will have you feeling worthless again in no time.

Get into competitive powerlifting or something. Do something where you can compete with others and still have a good time doing it. Or, start the task of undertaking something that you’ve always wanted to do. You should start doing something extreme, like white-water rafting, skydiving, base jumping, mountain climbing, snowboarding, or shit like that if you’re into it. Just find something new and more importantly, find something exciting.

CS

I understand how your feel: “OK, now what?”. For me, after I became successful in my first career I found a bigger mountain to climb. After I achieved my goals in my second career and became fairly successful I strove for significance. I wanted to see how many lives I could touch. I started to give back. And I’m not necessarily talking about giving money (although I’ve donated my fair share). I made personal evolution my “mission”, and I invested a lot of time doing that. After a while, found the answers I was looking for and in many parallel ways, came “full circle”.

I would caution you about starting a family before you feel you are ready - and after you “think” you are, wait a few more years. I jumped the gun and my children have paid the price with the divorce and the “less than ideal” family situation. Also, when you have considerable assets and you get a divorce, you tend to get your ass handed to you (I did). I definitely lost some ground there and with the recession, but I had several income streams with various companies I had a stake in. I read the market correctly and sold at the appropriate time and did quite nicely as a result. I fought the good fight with my mortgage career, but now that’s over (can’t get a license cuz I’m a felon), so at the moment I am just taking it easy, having fun, focusing on being a good dad and waiting for some inspiration. I’m certainly not in a hurry to “get back on the horse”. To be honest, I’m tired. I’m VERY selective about how I invest my time/energy and with whom. But at YOUR age, I’d go balls to the wall for a few more years while you have the energy and accumulate as much assets as you can. Perhaps consider securitizing some of the distressed assets that are out there and figure out how to make some chicken salad out of chicken shit - you certainly seem smart enough to figure out a way to make that profitable.

Another thing that helped me was to write my own epitaph and continue to refine it. But once you open up the Pandora’s box of personal evolution, it’s hard to put that cat back in the bag… It’s a journey worth taking, but don’t start until you are ready.

Find you passion, figure out how to get there and DO IT. (finding it is the “hard” part)

Have you considered coaching? I got to coach and really enjoyed working with the students and helping them learn a sport and develop as people. I did not think I did much of the latter but when I moved away the kids had put together a set of letters and a signed ball, both with messages from them. They talked more about me helping to grow up than about the actual sport stuff. Made me see and appreciate the role coaches can play in a kids life.

Just make some more threads.

I have an idea, fuck off and quit whining.

[quote]HoustonGuy wrote:
This is not a thread to brag and may be a good topic for the old dudes to share insight.

In the eternal quest for the “meaning of life” why do you do what you do, are you sincerely fulfilled or you find yourself bored, after reaching a certain stage in life do you lose your drive or does it just turn in to a background buzz of monotony?

Here is my lengthy (and common) back story:

I like to grab the bull by the balls. As a kid this manifested itself athletic competition, making good grades if my parents laid out incentives to achieve correctly, boyscouts (yes, this organization has a competitive element/building nature) et cetera.

As I got older I joined school sports teams, became an officer in FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) as an interest but also because it was something new to accomplish.

Then in college I did the same, albeit intramural sports, bjj on the side and various collegiate business groups/networks.

Anyways, I’ve always felt driven and always had a why for my what. Because I was always working torwards something, I was rarely bored.

Again I’m not bragging but after leaving college I was given a mgmt/biz development role for a company right out of the gate. (No, not Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Snap tools or any other bullshit). This was a challenge to master.

Long story short, the business slowed down with the economy, the writing was on the wall in general and I knew I could make more money on my own anyways.

I left and formed a business, made it grow over the last two years and it is now more or less on auto-pilot. Steady stream of income, constant organic growth… I really just play a backseat role now and manage a team.

I don’t have a structure to mold in to, no carrot in front of my face (I am the dangler) my goal is accomplished.

I should be happy right?

I’m fucking BORED!!! I’m on T-Nation distracting myself all the damn time for chrissakes.

I feel I’m economically and career wise at a stage in my life most people don’t experience until their autumn years and I can’t help but ask myself “What is the point?” I totally understand why some retired old dude would greet folks at Wal-Mart even if he doesn’t have to.

I have a nice house, sweet ride, take fun vacations and have hobbies in general but I found myself feeling more fulfilled as an up and comer at the bottom of the “mountain”.

This is a long rant maybe but what do you motherfuckers do to keep your “purpose” relevent?

Am I just a whiny, nearing 30 year old dude who is having a hard time accepting the next chapter or is there some secret of self satisfaction old dudes know?

I’m in my office posting this, I’ve putted on one of those fake plastic office “greens”, played a flight simulator online, read a chapter of a book, bullshitted with my sales guys… there has to be a more fulfilling use of time.

[/quote]

You have nothing to be pissed about. You have broke free from the slavery of working a 9-5 job at a young age. It really can’t get much better than that.
Working 9-5 is the same as being in jail. The key to the jail cell = money.

If I were you I would go on some serious holidays!

[quote]supa power wrote:
You have nothing to be pissed about. You have broke free from the slavery of working a 9-5 job at a young age. It really can’t get much better than that.
Working 9-5 is the same as being in jail. The key to the jail cell = money.

If I were you I would go on some serious holidays![/quote]

I really can’t agree with that. Nowhere close.

But hey, I’m one of those weirdos who would work even if I didn’t need the money.

Introspective replies, guys. I expected a flame playground.

I think the notion of giving back is the next step. I do love accomplishing a goal but feel it’s a purpose that I’m missing. I can hit goals at the gym, on the golf course, playing solitaire… I’ve considered building a new business but it seems like a dead end, not financially of course but would lead me straight back to where I am now and then… plus the one I have has growth potential and while I will absolutely take advantage of my opportunity that’s not really what I’m looking for, I already have it.

I’ve been doing some introspection and recalled Maslows Heirarchy. I feel I’m at the “self-actualization” stage and need to determine what exactly my individual potential is, on a deeper level than the superficial.

I personally believe giving back is the way to truly find ones self. I think this manifests as a parent as many have suggested (I have a son), a mentor or even boss, maybe financial gifts to deserving people who can use them make something of themselves…

I’ve signed up for a sort of “habitat for humanity” locally here, through a church. I plan to help fund some of the builds and get my hands dirty too. There have been some major fires in Texas of late and they will be concentrating resources to rebuild communities who lost everything due to uncontrollable forces.

I think this kind of outlet will allow me to have a why for my what. I can really make a difference outside of shuffling money around and keeping some for myself. I’m looking forward to my first build and the sense of accomplishment of building a physical structure and knowing it adds some good to an innocent persons life.

Thanks dudes!! “Paying it forward” is my new goal.

[quote]angry chicken wrote:
I understand how your feel: “OK, now what?”. For me, after I became successful in my first career I found a bigger mountain to climb. After I achieved my goals in my second career and became fairly successful I strove for significance. I wanted to see how many lives I could touch. I started to give back. And I’m not necessarily talking about giving money (although I’ve donated my fair share). I made personal evolution my “mission”, and I invested a lot of time doing that. After a while, found the answers I was looking for and in many parallel ways, came “full circle”.

I would caution you about starting a family before you feel you are ready - and after you “think” you are, wait a few more years. I jumped the gun and my children have paid the price with the divorce and the “less than ideal” family situation. Also, when you have considerable assets and you get a divorce, you tend to get your ass handed to you (I did). I definitely lost some ground there and with the recession, but I had several income streams with various companies I had a stake in. I read the market correctly and sold at the appropriate time and did quite nicely as a result. I fought the good fight with my mortgage career, but now that’s over (can’t get a license cuz I’m a felon), so at the moment I am just taking it easy, having fun, focusing on being a good dad and waiting for some inspiration. I’m certainly not in a hurry to “get back on the horse”. To be honest, I’m tired. I’m VERY selective about how I invest my time/energy and with whom. But at YOUR age, I’d go balls to the wall for a few more years while you have the energy and accumulate as much assets as you can. Perhaps consider securitizing some of the distressed assets that are out there and figure out how to make some chicken salad out of chicken shit - you certainly seem smart enough to figure out a way to make that profitable.

Another thing that helped me was to write my own epitaph and continue to refine it. But once you open up the Pandora’s box of personal evolution, it’s hard to put that cat back in the bag… It’s a journey worth taking, but don’t start until you are ready.

Find you passion, figure out how to get there and DO IT. (finding it is the “hard” part)[/quote]

I like your post but in the interest of time which we all know equals money, making salad out of shit is just way too time consuming when I can just use chickens. It would be a challenge though for sure.

I think personal evolution is something we all do whether intentionally or not. If you open your eyes to the ride you can learn more than most but I’m not sure I believe in paradigm shifts per se, just a natural flow on lifes timeline.

I think the discovery of self would make a great thread topic, however not exactly what I’m trying to convey here.

I fucking love myself.

[quote]Quick Ben wrote:
You could take up weight training.[/quote]

That was funny

I think you should begin a quest for enlightenment for several reasons, three of which I’ll list:

  1. Based on your post, it will probably take you awhile, although by asking this question you’ve already started. That will satisfy your itch for now.
  2. Once you realize your true nature, you won’t clutter up our board with these whiny first-world problem posts, because you won’t have that itch anymore, which is what you’re looking for anyway.
  3. It can be an enjoyable process. Frustrating sure, difficult yes, but a guy like you shouldn’t take issue you with.

Enlightenment provides contentment because it frees you from your desires and ignorance, which lead to your suffering. BG touched on this with one of his earlier posts in this thread. Enlightenment is the difference between knowledge and wisdom, understanding and realization.

Without direct realization, you’ll never be fully satisfied. BG also touched on that recently RE: stupid young people who don’t listen to old people. Now that doesn’t mean you have to be rich to learn that being rich doesn’t satisfy (although usually it takes that route), because you can go to the root of it all through something like enlightenment. But, since you’re already past that point and wondering where to go next, why not go to the center of it all?