TLDR: Stop obsessing over rigid, outcome-based goals, which often create an illusion of progress without real action. Instead, embrace constraints and “anti-goals” (what you refuse to do), as they force creativity, adaptability, and lead to more meaningful and innovative work, especially in complex and uncertain environments.
But these constraints should be as weak as possible see w-maxing.
Think about the career of the constraint-setter. One person sets a goal: “become a bestselling author.” Another imposes a constraint: “write every day, but never write what bores me.” The first may spend years pitching, networking, contorting themselves into marketable shapes. The second may accidentally build a following simply because the work sustains itself.
Do you want to be someone or do something?