Bold truth: life isn’t about stacking grandiose milestones to prove you’re not wasting yours; it’s about how you show up with what you have, in ways that feel meaningful to you. In Your Mileage May Vary, the column reframes success through value pluralism—the idea that we each hold multiple, valid values that can clash, making the path to “doing good” uniquely personal. If you’re curious whether your career is enough to matter, here’s a fresh, clearer take that preserves the core ideas and adds practical guidance.
Understanding mortality as a motivator
Our fear of mortality often fuels the urge to chase extraordinary careers. Anthropologist Ernest Becker argued that culture helps manage this terror by offering a sense of lasting significance. The question isn’t just what we accomplish, but how our choices help us live with the knowledge that life ends. This column invites you to examine whether you’re pursuing a grand legacy or seeking a more balanced, sustainable form of impact.
Key insights to guide your thinking
- We tend to assume a big, singular legacy is required to be meaningful. Becker suggests this pressure is a way to cope with our fear of being forgotten.
- The sense of meaning isn’t limited to monumental feats. Saint Thérèse of Lisieux showed that everyday acts, performed with heartfelt intention, can shape a life of holiness without grandiosity.
- Life offers many kinds of ‘goods.’ Starting from gratitude—acknowledging the value in small, everyday contributions—can naturally lead us to share more with others.
A contrast worth considering
- The pursuit of “the most good” can become all-consuming. Some people feel compelled to work at scale—saving lives, shaping policy—yet this focus can overlook the fuller spectrum of value in daily life.
- The opposite extreme—solely inward devotion or minimal outward impact—may neglect the potential benefits of contributing beyond one’s own circle.
- A balanced approach often yields the most sustainable happiness: a career that does meaningful work, while also leaving room for relationships, art, leisure, and personal growth.
Practical guidance for choosing a path
1) Recognize multiple forms of value: impact can be professional, relational, creative, and personal. Don’t pit one against the others without context.
2) Seek balance, not perfection: aim for a role that provides substantial good, preserves wellbeing, and aligns with your values, rather than chasing a mythical, all-encompassing impact.
3) Consider “going wide and deep”: if possible, pursue opportunities that allow meaningful work on a larger scale while still honoring daily acts of care and kindness in your immediate circle.
4) Reassess expectations: you may discover that your current career already offers meaningful influence in ways you hadn’t anticipated.
A nuanced takeaway
The utilitarian ideal and the “Little Way” both offer extremes that can mislead. It isn’t necessary to maximize impact in every sphere or to withdraw from helping others. In modern life, many people can and should cultivate a blend of breadth and depth—making a solid, pluralistic impact across different facets of life.
Final reflection and invitation
Rather than fixating on a singular, grand legacy, consider viewing life as a gift to be valued and shared. When you recognize your talents and resources as something to be grateful for, you’ll naturally want to extend goodness to others—without sacrificing your own wellbeing or the relationships that nourish you.
If you’re weighing a career shift, what matters most is whether the new path sustains your health, aligns with your values, and still allows you to enjoy and share life’s many “goods.” Are you comfortable with good done in a multitude of forms, not just the loudest, most visible feats? How might you design a role that combines meaningful impact with a rich personal life? Share your thoughts in the comments, and tell me where you stand on pursuing grand impact versus a balanced approach.
Bonus: Reading suggestions for deeper context
- An exploration of how people in the past experienced emotion compared to today, and what experiential relativity might mean for our sense of well-being.
- A look at how the abundance of choice intersects with true freedom, suggesting there may be freer ways to live than simply maximizing options.
- A contemporary piece on how modern AI systems shape our sense of self and the tasks we value.
