Desire or Should: Which am I building momentum towards?

Here’s what I’m reflecting on today.

I do a lot of things because I think I “should”, am “supposed to”, it’s “smart” and works for others, etc.

But I do other things simply because something in my heart and soul just wants and desires it — whether it makes sense or seems practical or profitable or not.

Pursuing the “should” things exhausts me… mentally, emotionally, spiritually, physically.

And, honestly, isn’t giving me very good results either, even though they should and seem to give results to others.

It’s frustrating. Because I have goals and needs that I’m trying to achieve and fulfill here, and these things SHOULD be working!!

And then I think about my inner authentic desires, which often don’t obviously lead to my goals and needs. Not apparently or obviously, anyway. I honestly don’t see “where” they’re taking me, I just know I want to explore it and find out.

I’ve also been told, about a zillion times from experts everywhere, that you gotta “take action” towards your goals and dreams every day, even (especially) when you don’t feel motivated or inspired, etc.

So I force myself to do the things I “should”, trusting they’ll lead me to what I want and need someday.

But if I’m honest with myself, that isn’t happening. I’m taking consistent, smart, intentional, practical, measurable action towards my dreams. The “smart/should” actions are happening. My results aren’t.

But surely I must have to do “something” to meet my needs and achieve my goals and dreams, right?

That’s when my angel pointed out to me, that “desire” and “momentum” aren’t the same thing.

Desire is what you want.

Momentum is energy moving you towards something.

You can have desire, with or without momentum.

You can have shoulds, with or without momentum.

I’ve had a lot of “should” goals — because those seem safe, smart, practical, reasonable, achievable, etc.

And I’ve been building momentum towards those should goals.

But those aren’t my desire goals.

They’re what my head/ego wants, not what my heart/soul wants.

For me, based on past experience, I’m GREAT at manifesting and achieving what my heart and soul desires.

When I actually take it seriously, believe in it, give it an honest go. And have a little faith. Enough to honestly try.

But lately, for reasons unknown to me, I’ve stopped listening to and following my heart.

I’ve been using my brain to keep me safe and choose life goals and figure out my whole life and career path in advance.

The brain creates shoulds. The brain looks at what’s worked in the past and for others. The brain only wants to pursue goals it knows are definitely possible for me to achieve.

My heart doesn’t care about any of that stuff. My heart just says, “I want this, go there, try that…” whether I immediately see “how” I’m gonna get there yet or not. And usually, it doesn’t know how. It just knows what it wants.

It just knows what I need — and what I would enjoy, honestly, authentically, in life.

Not what I “should” be and do. Not where I “should” live or work. Not who I “should” spend time with…

It just knows what, where, and who I “actually” desire.

And that desire sometimes changes, flows, and adapts over time. It’s always in response to who I am today, how I’ve grown, and what’s going on in the world around me.

It doesn’t have a detailed step by step plan for the next 20 years, because it doesn’t know who I’ll be or what my world will be like then.

It only knows and lives in the Now.

But it’s truthful. Honest. Real with me.

It’s 100% authentic to me.

“This is who you are, what you need, and what you want TODAY. If you want to feel happy and fulfilled, THIS is the person, place, thing, experience, etc for you. This is what you desire. This will meet your needs, based on the truth of you and your life, today.”

Not what “should” meet my needs in the future, based on logic, reason, past experience, or other people’s advice.

My angel encouraged me to build momentum — take action steps — toward what my heart actually DESIRES, not what my brain says I should want.

Momentum is important.

Momentum is real.

Momentum works.

It’s the target that’s my issue.

“Shoulds” only motivate me so much (they’re logical, not emotional). And maybe the universe is PROTECTING me by preventing these “shoulds” from manifesting.

Because imagine if I did achieve all those “smart, should” brain-based goals… Imagine if I were “successful” in following my ego’s plan for my life.

I’d “probably” be safe and secure. Maybe. But would I be happy? Would I be fulfilled?

What does the brain know of happiness or fulfillment. Those are emotional states of being.

Those are the domain of the HEART.

If I want to be happy, I must listen to my heart.

It’s as simple as that.

You wouldn’t go to a stock broker to ask for advice on how to make an original beautiful piece of art. You wouldn’t ask a master artist how to make money on the stock market.

You wouldn’t ask a single person for marriage advice. You wouldn’t ask an obese person for tips on using equipment at the gym.

You get my point. While those people might “know” a few tips, pointers, ideas, and suggestions they’ve “heard” about those things… the simple truth is, it’s outside their area of expertise or experience.

You want to go to the expert who LIVES and KNOWS their domain. The specialist. The one who lives and breathes it.

That’s who you’d go to for advice.

And the brain can only guess or try to predict what will make you feel happy and fulfilled.

But that’s not its domain. That’s not what it does or specializes in.

The brain is great for logic, problem-solving, imagination, learning and processing information, etc.

We have to turn to the heart for matters of the heart — happiness, emotion, connection, fulfillment, sense of meaningful and higher purpose, etc.

The brain guides with “shoulds”, the heart leads with desires.

But with any goal — a should or an actual desire — we still live in the physical world of cause and effect. Action, momentum, is still required.

Build momentum towards what you actually desire.

And stop creating momentum towards what I think I “should” be doing.

The universe is protecting me. My true goal is happiness, fulfillment, self-expression, spiritual purpose.

That’s heart and soul stuff.

So I’ll listen to my heart and soul on what to do and where to go next. It speaks to me through inspiration, desire, intuition…

And it often doesn’t make logical and practice sense. I often don’t see “how” it’ll work out or exactly “where” this path will take me.

I just know it’s what I actually want and need. What will actually fulfill me emotionally and spiritually. Today.

Tomorrow or next year may be a different guidance.

But my heart knows who I am, where I am, and what I need… today.

My heart knows what will bring me peace, happiness, love, joy, and fulfillment.

Even if I can’t see “how” it’ll work out in the end, or every step of the path in advance, my heart knows what I actually want and need.

The brain can only guess and provide me a list of shoulds.

Trust is involved when following the heart, obviously. A little courage, too.

Action is required to reach the destination.

Are you building momentum towards your actual desires — or just what you think you “should” be doing?

Maybe you’ll get better results if you’re building momentum towards your real desires.

It’s worth a try.

What I’m doing right now (pursuing shoulds) isn’t working for me anyway, honestly.

What have I got to lose?

If I try, I just might get what I actually want.

But I have to honestly try. And let my heart continually guide the way. I have to trust. I have to have faith. I have to be honest with myself.

What do I actually want — and what do I think I’m just supposed to want?