The other day we took an in-depth look at goals, in particular how this whole striving-for-an-outcome thing can trip us up a bit, reinforcing the outside-in illusion by making a fallacious connection between the goal and how we feel.
While I was writing that one, there was a concept that floated up for me—a sort of summary of it all—but then the post ended up going in a slightly different direction, and when I tried to squeeze it in, it didn't fit.
So it's here, instead. Your take-home message: