My last post discussed the battles we are fighting \u2013 some literal, some metaphorical, and some metaphysical. A line I added in one of my final edits said \u201cIf we are wise, clever, and determined \u2013 and just a bit lucky \u2013 we will win.\u201d<\/p>\n

What does it mean to win? What does victory look like for you? If this is carrying the military metaphors too far or if you don\u2019t like the dichotomy of winners and losers, what does success look like for you?<\/p>\n

More specifically, what does victory or success look like for you over the next four years?<\/p>\n

An important part of Magic 101 is selecting appropriate targets. Describe your goal as precisely as you can. Big dreams are good, but until you can specify exactly what you want, both your magic and your mundane efforts will be too vague and too dispersed to accomplish anything big.<\/p>\n

Defining victory in advance helps avoid mission creep. You know, like when you invade a country to eliminate weapons of mass destruction and you end up taking out a dictator, rewriting their constitution, inspiring terrorists, and keeping troops in the country for years on end? Yeah, like that. Before you start, ask yourself what you\u2019re trying to accomplish and how you\u2019ll know you\u2019ve accomplished it. Neglecting to define victory leads to endless war.<\/p>\n

Defining victory helps avoid unrealistic expectations. Never lose your dreams of living a good life in a peaceful, compassionate, sustainable society, but what can you expect to get done over the next four years? In World War II the Allies demanded unconditional surrender from the Axis powers \u2013 it took atomic bombs to achieve it.<\/p>\n

Defining victory lets us gauge our progress. If we turn our big dreams into actionable plans, we can see how we\u2019re doing. Are we on track? Then let\u2019s stick to the plan. Are we falling behind? Then let\u2019s make adjustments based on what we\u2019ve learned<\/p>\n

\n
<\/iframe><\/p>\nthese things may be best, but they are not realistic goals<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\nWhat does victory look like for you, personally?<\/strong><\/p>\nThis isn\u2019t about what you want for the world. It\u2019s not what laws you want to see passed or what customs you want see changed. This is all about you \u2013 what do YOU need to consider the next four years to be a victory?<\/p>\nA better job, a better house, improved finances? Improved health? Better relationships? Better sex? Deeper spiritual practices? Cultivating a more serene demeanor? Or maybe improving your hexing and cursing skills? This isn\u2019t what you think you want or what you think you\u2019re supposed to want. Deep down, what do you really want? What do you need to be who and what you\u2019re meant to be?<\/p>\nVictory doesn\u2019t always mean bigger-better-more. Sometimes it means holding on to what you\u2019ve already won. Sometimes it means letting go and moving on. Sometimes it means a tactical retreat \u2013 withdrawing to a safe space so you can fight again when the odds are more in your favor.<\/p>\nNobody can answer this question for you. Defining victory by someone else\u2019s standards is a recipe for misery, as I discovered in my 20s and early 30s when I thought I needed to be rich and powerful to be successful.<\/p>\nYour dreams, your goals, your plans, your life: what does victory look like when you look in the mirror?<\/p>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/01\/10-090-Tomb-of-the-Eagles.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-6004\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6004\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/01\/10-090-Tomb-of-the-Eagles.jpg\" alt=\"10 090 Tomb of the Eagles\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\"><\/a><\/p>\nWhat does victory look like for your tribe?<\/strong><\/p>\nBy \u201ctribe\u201d I mean your family, friends, and co-religionists \u2013 the people who share your values, your goals, and your life. These are people you know and care about, the people whose happiness matters as much as your own. What does victory look like for them?<\/p>\nNow, if you get to define victory your way, so do they. Don\u2019t assume they all want the same things, or the same things as you. Don\u2019t assume you know what they need. That means you have to actually talk to them about what it would mean to be successful in the coming environment.<\/p>\nA tribe is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2016\/10\/a-community-is-a-living-thing.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">an entity of its own<\/a>, not just a collection of individuals. You get as much of a voice in defining victory for the tribe as a whole as everyone else. What does the tribe need to be healthy, to continue its traditions, and to fulfill its mission?<\/p>\nSet the terms for victory based on results, not on methods. Over the coming four years, it is likely that many of the avenues for victory we\u2019ve become accustomed to will be blocked. Too often we spend tremendous amounts of time and energy maintaining a status quo that is more familiar than beneficial. Certainly we should fight to hold onto things that have been good and helpful, but if we lose them, look for different ways to accomplish the same things.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6005\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6005\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/01\/Old-North-Bridge-2013.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-6005\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-6005 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/01\/Old-North-Bridge-2013.jpg\" alt=\"Old North Bridge 2013\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6005\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Old_North_Bridge\" target=\"_blank\" class=\" decorated-link\" rel=\"nofollow\">the Old North Bridge<\/a> \u2013 2013<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nWhat does victory look like for the world at large?<\/strong><\/p>\nOver the next four years you\u2019re going to be inundated with some people telling you the world is falling apart and others telling you it\u2019s the best world that\u2019s ever been. How will you know?<\/p>\nHere\u2019s a hard truth \u2013 you don\u2019t know what\u2019s best for the world at large. Neither do I. Neither does anyone else. Your input matters, but so does the input of 7 billion other people. So does the input of 8 million other species. So does the input of countless mountains, forests, rivers, and oceans. These <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2016\/08\/intuitive-animism.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">non-human persons<\/a> have a hard time expressing their concerns to us \u2013 that doesn\u2019t make those concerns any less valid.<\/p>\nThe best we can hope for is sovereignty \u2013 the freedom of every living person (human and non-human) to rule their own lives as they see fit. This is neither cultural relativism nor libertarianism. Some beliefs, policies, and actions are clearly harmful to individuals and communities. Some encroach on the sovereignty of others. Some neglect our obligations to our communities and to other beings. These must be opposed. Many are so complicated it\u2019s hard to tell who they help and who they harm. These must be evaluated carefully.<\/p>\nWhat does improved sovereignty look like? To me, it starts with less environmental desecration, less fundamentalism and terrorism, and less empire. If we could say we had less of all that that in early 2021 when compared to early 2017 I\u2019d consider it a victory.<\/p>\nWhat about you?<\/p>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/01\/Red-Rock-Canyon-2016-23-600x300.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-6006\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6006\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/01\/Red-Rock-Canyon-2016-23-600x300.jpg\" alt=\"Red Rock Canyon 2016 23 600x300\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\"><\/a><\/p>\nWhat will it take to achieve victory?<\/strong><\/p>\nMy strong suggestion is that you spend several sessions in meditation on these questions \u2013 they\u2019re that important.<\/p>\nOnce you have an idea of what victory looks like, you can start making plans to achieve it. What can you do by yourself? Where do you need the assistance of your tribe? Where do you need the assistance of allies from other tribes, and from other realms? Do you have those alliances? If not, how can you start forming them? What do you have to offer to persuade them to help you? Reciprocity make the world go around\u2026<\/p>\nThe next four years will be challenging \u2013 as will the four years after that, and the four years after that, and on and on. We will not achieve everything we want, or even everything we think we need. But If we are wise, clever, and determined \u2013 and just a bit lucky \u2013 we will win.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What does it mean to win? What does victory look like for you? If you don\u2019t like the dichotomy of winners and losers, what does success look like for you? 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