The New Challenge

It has been four years since I posted the original Checkmate blog. During the last several months, I've thought a lot about that blog and how I felt at the time. More recently, I have spoken with several people who encountered a post Checkmate depressive state... a "what now?" conundrum. As I considered the concept of enjoying each achievement without  bounding forward to the next goal too quickly, it didn't occur to me that, eventually, there comes a time when all the goals seem to be met. We spent our twenties at a full sprint, and then the mid-thirties hit-- or you can fill in the appropriate age-- where all the battles are won, all the boxes checked, and it's time to "enjoy" life. Except, there's one problem: how can you enjoy life without goals? I guess some people can, but I have listened to many  people who feel more lost then anything else. Setting new goals seems futile because these new goals will never measure up to our objectives early on. How can "saving for a great retirement" compare with finishing college, graduate school, finding a spouse, or starting a family? How can "paying off all the college debt" compare with buying your first house? Now you've got the wife and the kids and the house, weekends at the soccer field, and the honorable discharge from the military, and you lay in bed at night feeling lost and empty. Because, for some people, "maintenance mode" just doesn't cut it. 

 

New goals: sometimes the most challenging goal is to figure out how to really matter in your world. I mean, REALLY matter. How many people wake up each morning and ask themselves, "What is my purpose for today?" I read about a woman who woke up one morning around the age of 40, and realized that her life was supposed to mean a lot more than raising a family. She became a world class body builder and fitness expert. That had to take some SERIOUS soul searching and commitment. I mean, how does someone even come up with that?

 

Sometimes finding purpose is as fundamental as staring your weaknesses or shortcomings - physical or psychological - in the face, and beginning the trek uphill to right those wrongs. As far as I can tell, those challenges far exceed the ones we face earlier in life. You face these new challenges alone, without an entire generation of people supporting you because they have common goals. The ones who are committed to becoming better and better, and fixing whatever became broken during the years of growing up, are few and far between.

 

Facing the issues-- bad health, a broken marriage, financial folly, personal imbalance, lack of fulfillment, lack of meaningful contribution to your world-- is probably the hardest thing a person can do, right behind raising children. However, behind raising children, I believe it to be the most worthy challenge you will ever accept.