Being a Somewhere Man

My older sister is a wonderful person. Aside from enduring her reign as my official babysitter from ages 0 to 10, she has taught me many useful things. Number one on my list of Most Useful Lessons Taught to Me by My Older Sister is this simple truth: Life is better with the Beatles. Boy howdy, did she love the Beatles! Everywhere she was, the Beatles were there, too. In her room, in the car, in the kitchen, on her Walkman . . . it was like Big Brother Beatle was always watching. I don’t think anyone cried harder than she did the night George Harrison passed away, just nine days after my sister’s 17th birthday. As years went on and I advanced from 1st to 2nd to 3rd grade, the inevitable finally happened, and soon enough I felt a tapping in my toe and a prickling in my ear that made me want to twist and shout. I loved the Beatles! I fell in love with their charm, their music, and those funny accents. I started having 8-year-old daydreams of sitting in Shea Stadium in 1965 and being swarmed by an army of screaming teenage girls. This is when I learned that life is getting better all the time (especially when you have a slight man crush on Paul McCartney).

Fast forward a few years to present, and I’m still learning from the Beatles. Take this song for example: “Nowhere Man.” What wisdom! Oh, wait, you don’t know the lyrics? Well, give this a listen and  you’ll get it pretty quick . . .

P.S. If you want a really trippy experience, click here to see the song as it appears in the Yellow Submarine, the late 60s nightmare cartoon. I said I learned from the Beatles, I never said I emulated them.

Being a Nowhere Man–Why goals matter

Goals have become an integral part of my life. Not just the 2nd grade daydream of being an astronaut, (although those day dreams are precious and important) but the daily, boring, and oftentimes pestering goals that move me from day to day, week to week. As easy as it would be to just “live life” and have a ball, that’s not the way life works. Well, I suppose it works for some people, but I’ve learned that life isn’t very generous in the department of giving back to those who have not given. So what does this song teach us? Let’s break it down.

“Doesn’t have a point of view”

How many summer days were wasted with a group of friends trying to decide what to do, the anthems of “I don’t care,” and “whatever you want” still echoing as the sun set? I maintain that one of the saddest things to see in life is someone without an opinion. Sure, you don’t need to be a Glenn Beck or an Ed Schulz, but caring enough about something to really want it, and being able to express that desire in a non-threatening way, will really bring out the vitality of life. It’s fun knowing that you own your own passions. A goal-centered life allows you to know what you want and when you want it.

“Knows not where he’s going to”

It’s simple. You can’t score without a goal. If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there? I honestly have no idea how to convey this idea without sounding any more cliché than I already have. I will spare you the sickeningly inspirational quotes and simply say that goals provide you with direction, and it always feels good to know that you are going somewhere you want to go.

 “Isn’t he a bit like you and me?”

I’ll be the first to admit that being lazy is fun. With nothing to do and nowhere to go, life can get really relaxing really fast. But I love this line because it keeps me honest in my thoughts and restrains me from automatically passing judgement, especially when it comes to judging myself to be better than I really am.

“Nowhere Man, please listen. You don’t know what you’re missing”

We’ve all been there. You get up saying, “This will be the day.” You hop in the car and drive to the amusement park for your annual family summer getaway. Feet tapping and fingers fidgeting, you think about how you’ve chickened out of riding that rollercoaster for the last three years. Pulling up to the park sends a wave of anxiety and anticipation down your spine, but today is the day that you promised to yourself you would conquer your worst nightmare. Forty-five minutes in line gives you plenty to think about, but you are committed. Finally, you reach the front and find a seat. Further than you’ve ever gotten, you realize that there is literally no way to turn back because you are strapped in to your seat like a NASCAR driver. The next 90 seconds feel like eternity, but when you woozily step off at the end of the ride, a funny thing happens. You throw your fist in the air and scream, “That was the best thing ever!!!”

Goals challenge us to flee from our comfort zone, allowing us to look back and see how far we’ve come while opening our eyes to the potential of how far we can really go.

“Nowhere Man, the world is at your command”

With goals committed to paper, living your dream immediately begins to become a reality. Goals and visions put you behind the wheel of your own car on a track that you designed.

Being a Somewhere Man

I’ll never forget the day I learned that setting goals would get me places in life. Okay, so there wasn’t actually one day, and in all fairness I’m still learning the role that goals play in my life, but I have learned a thing or two along the way. Rather than have me do the talking, however, let me turn the time over to motivational and success author, Harvey Mackay. I might not remember the day I learned that goals will get me places in life, but I do remember the day my high school math teacher handed us all a copy of Mackay’s latest article. Since then, I’ve read and re-read that article, ripping it apart and putting it back together again. Never have I seen or heard better advice on how to reach my potential. I was originally just going to pull my favorite quotes of his, but it wasn’t the same as reading the whole article. So that’s why I gave you the whole article. Enjoy!

I once heard a high school math instructor issue this challenge at a school assembly: "I hope you all fail," he said, to an audience of high school seniors, eager to go out and conquer the world. "Because if you don’t, you haven’t set your goals high enough."

You can get by without setting goals. Most people do. They fall into a routine and inertia carries them through life. They never suffer great disappointments in their work, but they never get very far along the career path either. Then, before you know it, it’s all over, and they realize that they could have accomplished so much more if only they had been willing to risk failure. 

Getting by without setting goals is the ultimate form of self-delusion. It is a guaranteed way for people to achieve failure without ever having to admit it to themselves.With a new year upon us, it’s a perfect time to set your goals for the year, for the decade or for the rest of your life. After all, if you don’t set goals to determine where you’re going, how will you know when you get there? 

Goals not only give you more than a reason to get up in the morning; they are an incentive to keep you going all day. Goals tend to tap the deeper resources and draw the best out of life. Achieving goals produces significant accomplishments.

Most important, goals need to be realistic: beyond your grasp but within your reach and in the foreseeable future.Setting reasonable life goals is usually a two-step process. First you discover what your dreams are, then you have to figure out a realistic way to make these things happen. 

Step 1: Dreaming. This is fun and easy to do. Get a notepad and block out some time. Turn your cell phone and other wireless devices off. Commit this time to yourself. Now dream. Write down whatever it is you really want. If you want to go to Hawaii and dance the hula, write it down. If you want to climb Mount Everest, write it down. Free your mind and open yourself to possibilities that you might not necessarily recognize otherwise. You shouldn’t expect these things to happen all at once, but the things that have meaning for you will resonate, and then you will have the confidence to start taking the steps to realize your dream. 

Step 2: Goal setting. Setting good goals is about plotting the incremental but necessary steps to start the journey. So if your dream is to dance the hula in Hawaii and you can’t afford to go there right now, you’ll know that you have to set a budget and start saving money for the trip. Look for cheap airfare and sign up for a hula dancing class, small first steps. The trip, instead of a remote dream that will never be realized, suddenly has the real possibility of becoming part of your life experience.

Deciding what you want is an important first step toward success — personal or professional. But it’s not enough to simply know your goal. You’ve got to know how you’re going to achieve it. Frame your goals in terms of tasks and performance, not just outcomes: What actions do you need to take, today and tomorrow and in the future, to get closer to your objective? Assigning specific tasks to yourself, knowing how you’ll measure the outcome of each activity, gives you a sense of control over what happens to you. You’re not just wishing for success, but working steadily toward it. Regular accomplishments will keep you motivated and moving forward. 

Evangelist Robert H. Schuller describes four kinds of people. First are the cop-outs. These people set no goals and make no decisions. 

Second are the hold-outs. They have a beautiful dream, but they’re afraid to respond to its challenge because they aren’t sure they can make it. 

Third are the drop-outs. They start to make their dream come true. They know their role. They set their goals, but when the going gets tough, they quit. 

Finally, there are the all-outs. They are the people who know their role. They want and need and are going to be stars — star students, star parents, star waitresses. They want to shine out as an inspiration to others. They set their goals. The all-outs never quit. They’re committed. 

–Mackay, H. (2010, January 4). "You Can’t Score a Goal Unless You Have One." Washington Examiner.

Hit the nail on the head, didn’t he? If you feel like you’re a bit of a Nowhere Man, take courage and start making some goals today. If you feel like you already know where you’re headed, keep at it and don’t lose sight of that dream. It’s worth it.

Have some insightful thoughts about reaching your goals? Please share! Comment below and let us know.