Perhaps to gain clarity on how, like Bill Clinton, I could live my dreams, I bought my own copy of his memoir when we broke for long holidays in December 2007. I re-read the memoir over that holiday and again in 2010. So many statements in it inspired me, including this one:
When I was a young man just out of law school and eager to get on with my life, on a whim I briefly put aside my reading preference for fiction and history and bought one of those how-to books: How to Get Control of Your Time and Your Life, by Alan Lakein. The book's main point was the necessity of listing short-, medium-, and long-term goals, then categorizing them in order of their importance, with A group being the most important, the B group next, and the C the last, then listing under each goal specific activities designed to achieve them. I still have that paperback book, now almost thirty years old. And I'm sure I have that old list somewhere buried in my papers, though I can't find it. However, I do remember the A list. I wanted to be a good man, have a good marriage and children, have good friends, make a successful political life, and write a great book.On analyzing the life of Bill Clinton, I have discovered that he achieved all the life goals that he set when he was a young man. He has been a good man, been happily married to Hillary Clinton, has had wonderful friends across the globe, led his country to peace and prosperity during his years as U.S. president, and wrote an endearing memoir that stirred me to action.
The thing that impressed me most about Bill Clinton was the way he prioritized being a good man while he was setting his goals. That was very wise of him because at the end of our lives, what matters is whether we were good people. Don't you agree?
Inspired by Bill Clinton, I penned my life goals in 2010. I basically copied Clinton's goals and then added several more. When I shared the goals on Facebook in 2015, some people criticized me for setting too many goals. Even my brother Bob Njinju advised me to focus on one.
Come to think of it, Bill Clinton wasn't that stupid to set as many life goals as I did in 2010. Though he had a talent in music and had the potential to be a fine doctor, he focused only on politics and writing perhaps because they brought him the greatest joy.
So I have decided to whittle down my life goals. In addition to being a good man, making great friends and having a wonderful family, my other goals are writing uplifting stories and producing beautiful hymns for sharing on this monetized blog of mine. I want to carve out a nice little career for myself as a blogger.
My beloved reader, I beseech you to also set life goals. And don't make the mistake of coming up with too many of them like I did. Select a few that you have the ability to achieve and then focus on attaining them, "focus" being the operative word. It pays to focus; just ask Bill Clinton.
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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed the above story on setting goals, you might also enjoy another one on "Imitation is Limitation" which I wrote last year. Just click that link in blue to dive straight into the story.
