The race for things

I felt this recently when my kid went to a competition with their friends. Everyone came to the competition with their own purpose or motivation. Some wanted to get away from home, some wanted to spend time with their friends, some genuinely wanted to win, and some simply wanted to have a nice time in a good place.

As long as their own purpose was fulfilled, they weren’t jealous of anyone else. They didn’t even seem to care if someone did better than them in the competition. Everyone was happy in their own way.

If you look around, though, there seems to be a constant race for things. People want a better job than their friends, a better house, a better car, higher status, more approval on social media, and so on.

I strongly feel that, deep down, people often want something else. Chasing these things can sometimes be an alternative to what they actually want. And because it is an alternative, it is never completely satisfying or enough.

There may be many reasons—our way of life, circumstances, societal pressures, responsibilities—that prevent us from getting what we truly want. But sometimes our ego doesn’t allow us to accept that. Instead, it pushes us to look for alternatives and convince ourselves that those are what we wanted in the first place.

Sit silently for a few minutes, or perhaps do it for a few days. Try to figure out what you actually want and what is preventing you from getting it.

I think understanding that can bring a lot more peace than constantly chasing alternatives.