Is your career goal even good for you?

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Ever considered that your goal may not be good for you?

Ever considered that your goal isn't authentically yours...but someone or something else's?

Ever considered that you aren't being fully responsible for choosing what you want?

Or that your choice of goal only mimics the desire of the systems or cultures around you?

French social scientist, René Gérard calls this "Mimetic Desire". It's the theory that you unconsciously mimic the desires of others rather than engaging in a process to pursue what truly matters most to you.

Beyond our basic needs, what we value and desire is subjective. That subjective value is often determined mimetically and according to what other people want.

Author, Luke Burgis, cites the wonderful example of a chef who desires the prestigious Michelin Star 🌟. The chef doesn't really want that star but rather the prestige that comes with it.

WHY do you want what you want? In your career, life or otherwise?

My clients and I reflect on this always, especially when it comes to setting new goals.

For if you're not focusing on why or how you're choosing your goals, your goals can quickly turn into tools for self-condemnation and flagellation.

So, consider that a goal which is authentically yours, starts when you begin to step back and consciously review the systems, beliefs and cultures that influence your choices.

What about you? Are you creating a new goal right now that is more authentically you? I wanna hear 👂


P.S. Curious about working together? Click here to apply for your complimentary coaching consultation.

P.P.S. Most clients start work with me because the unhappiness they feel in their careers is a result of "mimetic desire". In other words, the choices they made to pursue what they did vocationally was NOT reflective of their own desires, but that of their families, cultures or systems around them.