halsed.com featuring Darryl Halse

Target Practice

There was an old computer game I used to play when I was a kid. It was a track & field game where you could run races (press spacebar as fast as you can), shoot targets with a bow and arrow (aim with arrows and press spacebar at the right time), and my favorite: the javelin game. Keep in mind, this was in the '90s which meant the game was pretty basic - picture pixels the size of dimes and you're probably not too far off. So the controls were equally rudimentary. Press spacebar to activate the power bar and press it again to stop it. If the slider got to the top and you didn't stop it your avatar would fumble a pathetic throw and you didn't get any points. The closer to the top, the farther your javelin went and the more points you got. You had to reach a certain amount of points to get to the next level and each level the point total increased. I loved that game because I mastered it - not in that I could hit the top every time, but I could consistently get high enough without going over to make it to the next level.

Don't worry, this isn't a review of mind-blowing 1990s video games, I have a point to make here and it's about goals.

What made me think about this old game was a chat I had with a friend about entrepreneurs. He was commenting that a lot of the entrepreneurs he encounters have delusions of grandeur. He tells me that this is why he could never be an entrepreneur himself. He felt that these people wanted to be the next Bill Gates, Michael Dell, or Seth Godin and, being a very realistic person, knew the numbers just didn't add up - the chances of achieving that success, regardless of how talented you are, are slim. So by going into that arena you are almost assuredly heading for failure.

While I don't think I have it in me to be an entrepreneur (at least not right now), I still disagree with his perspective. It goes back to the javelin game - you are always shooting for the top, always trying to be the next Steve Jobs or Sydney Crosby, but safe in the knowledge that if you don't quite get there you'll still be a success. The danger lies in not accepting that there is still success below this ultimate goal. If you're continually overreaching yourself to achieve something that is statistically unattainable you will surely burn out before you get there (Game Over). On the other hand if you consistently aim for the top, broaden your perspective of success, and keep yourself in the game you may very well find yourself surpassing even your own expectations.

Or your dad might turn off the computer just when you were about to beat your high score - come on man, I'll do my homework after, I promise!