While having a coffee with my partners on the occasion of 4th anniversary of our venture, I happened to ask them how has been their experience. Obviously, on such occasions, the norm is to recount all the good things that have happened over the period. There were a few things that could have been done better (a very professional way of saying, you moron, you didn't know what you were doing) but that was it.
And then we moved to the future specific discussion. One of the partner, by nature is very risk sensitive and will have all the worries of what can go wrong. I was checking very specifically with him as he is the one who seems to have lost the appeal of a laughter. I asked him, do you have any specific goals? Obviously the answer was, we need to be big and profitable. I probed further, how big? I knew he will figure out very quickly, he is very intelligent for sure, that I am leading to something else.
Thats the time I asked if he enjoyed the journey and will he, if it is bereft of goals.
We are all so driven by goals and rightly so, all our childhood our goal has been to score closest to 100%. That one outcome had all the relevance of spending a year in the school. As we progressed, next goal was to get into a job and that one outcome was the reason we did the management (I am exaggerating a bit) education and then ofcourse a sweetheart to go after to marry her.
The outcome is so important for us.
Instead, if we start enjoying the journey what will happen? Yes, there is a real threat of getting lost and not knowing how much has been the progress, yet, if everyday/every moment is what you are looking forward to, you will try and make it memorable. Whenever we recount past, what comes to our mind is moments and not the outcomes. Then why are we so obsessed with them?
