The Fallacy of Achievement

The mistake that many make is to put achievement above all else.

I remember when I lived in the U.S. and I met people who would gladly do anything to get ahead, and effortlessly step on others' feet, heads or any other body part to get ahead. It seemed strange and out of place in my Caribbean-based reality where people were pushing hand-made carts to sell sky-juice and shaved ice for a few dollars each day.

This brilliant article at 43 Folders, a personal productivity focused blog, captures the feeling perfectly. It looks at the pointlessness that we call accomplishment and how hard it is for us to break out of the immediate world around us, and to realize the context that we in fact live in.

For example, the obvious poverty here in Jamaica constantly reminds me that I am lucky, especially at those moments when I think that my life should be as it was in South Florida.