#2: Escaping Vagueness Purgatory

Hey Rollers,

Before you read any further, grab a pen and paper…I’ll wait.

Nice one. Now let’s get into it.

I like to think of myself as an ambitious guy. I’ve got the hours of “work” to prove it. Heck, I might even have Malcolm Gladwell’s famous 10,000 hours.

But recently, a realisation hit me like a bee to the ear at 80km/hour:
I’ve been way too reliant on the “spray-and-pray” method.

Let me paint the picture with a quick analogy.

Ever tried opening Google Maps and typing “somewhere nice”? Probably not, because that’d be ridiculous. Yet, when it comes to our ambitions, it’s exactly what we tend to do. Vague goals and blurry destinations, hoping we’ll magically arrive at some sort of success or fulfilment.

Here are the two lines that spurred me into action:

General ambition creates anxiety.
Specific ambition creates direction.

But why is specificity so hellishly uncomfortable?

Because being specific takes away our excuses. It demands we clearly name what we want (😱), and that means risking the very real possibility that we might fail. Or, even scarier, that our limits might fall short of our expectations.

Vagueness keeps us safely locked in wanting-to-be, never needing to step into becoming. It’s easy to delay, avoid, and wait indefinitely in that faux-comfort.

I call this Vagueness Purgatory.

To escape, you have to take a hero’s journey (Joseph Campbell style):

• Departure from vague: Clearly naming your ambition.
• Challenge by the specific: Testing yourself against the unknown, uncertainty, and possibility of failure.
• Return with clarity: Embracing either success or the valuable lessons about who you truly are and what you’re capable of.