“What are your biggest goals in life? What progress have you made in attaining them?”

I’ve made it no secret that I want to be a writer. I write over five hundred words every day, and have a fleshed out sword and sorcery universe ready to unfold. I want to write, but I wouldn’t say its because I want to be a writer. I would argue that everybody on Earth wants the same thing. We all want to be happy. The things we do and aspire to be are all means to an end. I’m not saying we all want everybody to be happy, because sometimes goals oppose each other. We can’t all be the best in the world at any one thing, since by definition somebody has to be at the top.

But I think we all want to be happy. If you want to rule the world, it’s not necessarily because you want everybody to bow to your every whim (though that’s a neat perk). It’s because you believe the power you would have in that scenario brings you happiness. At the same time, I don’t think donating food to the hungry and poor is the reason people do it. I don’t personally believe in true altruism. I think that the best case scenario for the people helping the less fortunate is that it brings that person satisfaction to know that they have helped. They can care about that homeless person, sure, but I think that it is impossible to help people solely because you want to help them.

So, I want to be happy. I think we all go about this in different ways. For me, I think happiness means sharing my creativity with the public, going to conventions and book signings and writing more about my beloved characters, then going home (or leaving the office in my home) to spend time with my wife. I personally don’t think that I will have all of my dreams accomplished simultaneously. I could become a successful author but still live in a cramped apartment. I could become a successful author but still be single and lonely. I could accomplish something that doesn’t relate to writing, realizing a dream I didn’t know I had while giving up some of the dreams I still wished to fulfill. I won’t pretend as though everything will go according to any plan I form. Obviously life doesn’t pan out like that since its full of surprises.

So, I’m writing. I’m trying to get as much of a headstart on my career as possible to give myself the best chance at succeeding. I plan on going to college for at least five more years, hopefully without picking up any student debt (we’ll see how that goes) and by the time I get out I can do something with my life while I focus further on my writing career.

But in the end, I could not possibly care less about what the future holds as long as I can come out of it happy. And honestly, I’m pretty confident in my ability to accomplish that. Eventually.