The Status Quo

What drives man to always be looking beyond the next horizon for that ultimate attainment of fulfillment, while others, at the same time, are satisfied enough with the current now? Is it the "some day" principle? Some day I will make a million dollars and THEN I will be happy. Some day I will finally drop those few pounds and THEN I will be content. Some day I will travel to far off places and mingle with the cultures of the world and THEN I will be satisfied.

At one end of the spectrum we have the type (yes I am stereotyping, get over it already) of people who gravitate to the path of least resistance. These folks are what make up the majority of people we come in contact with on a daily basis. Their life is their life and they are purposely, albeit aimlessly drifting toward deterministic, reactionary, imposed life situations. Their daily choices revolve around the concept of how best to react to any given situation. There are a lot of "what if" questions asked by this group. What if such and such happens, what will I do? Or, what if so and so asks me this, what will I say? This group is wary and even at times stressed by the unknown factors in life.

On the other side of the fence are the adventurers, the trailblazers, and free spirits of the world. Rather than always wondering what hand life will deal them, they make their own deck, shuffle it and deal themselves a hand. If they don't like it, they do it again until they see something they like. While this lifestyle seems to be more exciting and even more proactive, it also has its hangups and pitfalls. There is much more of the unknown with this approach, but that is part of what drives the individual to succeed.

While it is likely improbable to ally yourself to any one of these ideals exclusively, I would tend to think those who favor the latter ideal more heavily, would experience higher highs and lower lows. Their expectation in most situations would almost always exceed that of the result, but that driving desire would bring you a greater satisfaction when you look back on your life accomplishments. Those that follow the status quo and live a more mundane and safe existence would feel a greater sense of satisfaction in the moment, but would look back with regret on what could have been, rather than what was.

Both approaches have merit to be sure, and for any given situation, one ideal might be a better choice, but for me, I will try and push myself and those around me to attain a higher station, a grander vista of life as it were.