Needs, Haves, And Wants

What is the driving force that makes people do things in life?  In every area of our lives we have different things that motivate and inspire us to make the decisions that we make.

I was sitting down thinking about all the things I do on a daily basis.  I came to the conclusion that there are 3 basic reasons that motivate us to do what we do.

1. Have to's-  A majority of our daily tasks consist of things that we feel that we "have to" do.  We have to go to work, have to take care of our kids, and so on and so on....
2.  Need to's- This is where is starts to get more oppressive.  Things we simply do out of need, but we don't necessarily want to.  "Need to" pay a bill, "need to" make ends meet, "need to" buy some time, etc....
3. Want to's- This I mean in the most positive light.  These are things that we have a strong desire to do that comes from within, without the influence or pressure from things outside yourself.

It is my opinion that we need to strive to do more things because we want to.  So many of our choices are made due to oppressive needs and things that we feel we have to do.  Most of these decisions are made out of fear.

When I thought about these main driving forces, I was thinking about my relationship with my wife.  I don't need my wife, I want my wife.  I am not still married because a piece of paper says I "have to".   After 4 years of ups and downs, successes and failures, I am still married today because I "want to".

But how many of us are in relationships because we feel that we "need" a man or a woman?  How many women tough it out because they feel they "have to" for the kids?

How many of us wake up in the morning and go to a job because we "need" to make a certain amount of money?

Can you count the hours out of the day that you don't do things because you "have to"?

By no means am I saying to neglect our responsibilities in life.  But there has to be a time where we step back and look at the quality of our every day lives and strive for improvement.

Let us take steps to do things that we really, really, really, want to do.  From relationships, to careers, down to just how the hours of your day is spent;  It feels good when the driving force behind it is because you really want to!