Ratcheting
It occurs to me that as a person with a high need for achievement, the most valuable type of achievements (to me) are the ones that "ratchet".
I was so excited when I finally got my degree in Engineering because I felt that I finally had something that no-one would be able to take away from me. No matter where I would go from that point forward, I would always be someone who held a degree in engineering.
I felt the same way when I finished my first book. I would never go back to being a person who had never published anything. I'd never again be someone who had never finished a significant self-driven project.
Over the past few months I've been working at completing my Professional Engineering application. I will need to work to maintain my status as a professional engineer for the rest of my life, but still... once I've got it, I've got it. It's a ratchet goal.
What ratchet goals are you striving for right now?
September 6th, 2011 - 09:12
As a hopeful musician, an extraordinary recording is my goal. Even if someone steals all the rights to it and I never get to hear it, I could still say, “yea, that’s me! I made this wonderful recording and for my whole life and beyond no one can take that away!”
September 9th, 2011 - 14:17
That’s an awesome ratchet goal, Nate! How amazing to be able to fire up a file and hear your own finished song… a great thing to pass on as an heirloom, too