Six Daily Goals

I suppose we all set goals for ourselves from time to time. Goals that we'd like to live up to because we think they will help us take full advantage of our lives. These six daily goals are the most serious effort I have made in that direction. The effort of creating these goals has forced me to think, as best I can, about the universal human condition. The effort has been good for me. Now it is your turn to give these ideas a little thought.

1. Be neither an island nor a swamp
2. Neither hurt others nor be overly touchy
3. Listen to your body, your mind, and your soul
4. Accept your limitations without succumbing to them
5. Exercise your will in harmony with others
6. Respect your world but do not venerate it
Click on the number for a discussion of the goal. In many cases the meaning is not quite clear without the discussion. This is because I prefer an easily remembered goal to a precise one.

I have placed all six goals and the accompanying discussions in the public domain. You may copy them. In fact, I wish you would. My one request is that you include a reference to this web page with each copy.

More than a decade after writing these, I was moved to write Five Truths about life.

J Adrian Zimmer