One life

I only have one life. My goal is to get the most of it, to be pleased by what I have achieved. First difficulty, how to measure what it means to "get the most of it", I think it revolves around having no regrets but also no failures. It means to live my life to the fullest.

Where does this lead me? What life would make me happy? Happiness is not key to my goal. I think happiness is not related to success, it is a state of self-contempt, it is a way to settle for what you have.

It seems I am doomed to never enjoyed happiness for a long time. If happiness is a sign of self-content, I would end up being unhappy because I settled too soon. If I do not settle, then I will never take the time to enjoy what I achieve. the only solution is to enjoy the journey, not the destination.

Success, happiness, regrets, can also be defined along several axes with relative importance. Among the most important ones for now, among my driven axes: education and impact. But yet again, both are just a mean to an end, the important part is to understand why it matters to me.

Education
Education is about giving something back, transmit what I have learned to others. It is also about being recognized, acknowledge in a useful manner. I guess it is also about being remembered by having a great impact on people. It is not only about teaching, its about being the best at teaching. Being look up upon by someone else. It feels good to ace a presentation, to be the center of attention and to talk about what matters to you to people that want to listen.

there are hidden benefits to it but here I want to only look at why it is so important and becoming even more important in the later years.

Impact
Being able to have an impact has been important for as long as I realized I will die. I want to be remembered for what I achieved, I want to matter. I want people to re