The goal is to build something that doesn’t need escaping from.
…Because escaping only lasts so long before your innate desire to build something arises again.
And not because we humans love to work—because we don’t.
But because we human crave fulfillment—and what’s worse than work is feeling like you’re living an empty type of existence.
So, back to work we go… because fulfillment is something building provides. Here’s how:
Building is growth—what else is building, but combining a bunch of lesser parts into some type of a greater whole?
Building is contribution—the value that’s added from this lesser parts combination becomes a creation that at the very least, serves you, which helps you to then serve others.
Building is connection/love—connecting parts, connecting minds, connecting resources, connecting ideas, connecting hearts…
Building is significance—whether it’s solely yours to build or you’re a part of a team that’s building somebody else’s dream… you get to leave your fingerprints on something that otherwise wouldn’t exist.
Building is certainty—it allows you to plan, dream, draw, shape, and mold something that starts out abstract and slowly becomes a tangible part of reality.
Building is uncertainty—and then, of course, things never go perfectly according to plan, so you get to adjust, pivot, problem-solve, fire fight, and learn by doing in an unpredictable way.
The real question you need to be grappling with isn’t—how can I escape from this work.
The real question you need to be grappling with is—how can I better incorporate each of these above elements into the work I’m choosing to do?