Setting goals and shooting bows

The three parts of every action

When an archer shoots a target, there are three parts to that action.

First, the goal of hitting the target. It’s fully under the archer's control. He will set the intention (why I want to hit the target) and decide to perform the action.

Second, the action. Making the shot. Also fully under the archer’s control. He can do everything in his power to make the perfect shot - check the wind, prepare the bow, take the correct stand.

Third, it's the end. The reality of the arrow actually hitting the target. Here, the archer is no longer in control. Anything can happen - the wind can change, the bow can break. This is not under the archers’ control and thus not something he needs to spend any time thinking about.

The only two parts you control in the progress towards your goals are having the right intentions (setting the right goals) and performing the correct action in the best way you possibly can. The rest we leave up to the universe to figure out.

It’s not the results that count, for it never depends solely on us. It’s the intention one has when seeking the result and the action we take to get there.