So what? Now what?

‘So what’ and ‘now what’ are probably the 2 simplest ways to check if what you are doing is really really what you want. Why is it that knowing what you really want is important? It ensures that you do not waste all your effort and time only to find out that what you have achieved is not what you want at the finish line. For this, the ‘so what’ question will help. What about ‘now what’. This is the next question that you need to ask yourself after you cross the finish line.

An example to exemplify the importance of ‘so what’ can be found in a Chinese proverb called ‘she gong hao long’, simply translated as ‘she gong the dragon fanatic’

She Gong is a rich guy that lived in the olden days of China. He is so mesmerized with dragons that his house, robes and paintings are all about dragons. One day, the Dragon King was passing by and was completely flattered by She Gong’s admiration for dragons. To appreciate this, Dragon King decided to pay him a visit and personally thank him. So, he transformed himself into a dragon and paid She Gong a visit. The moment She Gong saw him, She Gong was so terrified that he immediately fainted in his garden. What happened? She Gong thought he liked dragons so much but when faced with a real dragon, he realized that dragons were not really what he wanted!

This store exemplifies a lot about our dream jobs, dream house and dream life. We may think that is what we really want and hence, day and night, we work hard to get there. To a lot of people who are in this fix, most of us realize that when we achieve what we want, all of a sudden we ask ourselves, “hey…how come I don’t feel great about it?” In other words, we become She Gong!

In order to avoid this, it is very important that we continue to ask ourselves a very basic question of ‘so what?’ Some of us want to achieve financial freedom by Year 2010. While it may sound good, we need to further ask ‘so what when we have financial freedom?’ ‘Well, then I don’t have to pay loans anymore!’ So? ‘Err…I can buy more things!’ ‘Doesn’t that get you back into a loan state again?’ Err…

Some may want to retire early. Again, the same question, “so what if you can retire by 45 years old?” Then I can wake up late everyday! So what if you can wake up late? Err…then I am less stressful. So? Then I achieve better health. So? Err…

Please don’t get me wrong that financial freedom and early retirement are not good. But what I’m saying is that we need to check again and again to make sure that is what we really really want. If it is, then go ahead. If you are not sure, then check further to see if within your dream, there is another ‘hidden dream’.

Now, let’s say that you pass the ‘so what’ test. You know exactly what you want. Then you are ready for the 2nd test :”Now what?” When you have achieved what you want, always remember that life does not stop there (stopping there will be really unlucky right?). So, where do you want to move from there onwards? I have friends who are always very focused on what they want in their career. They can spell out to you that they aim to be a Marketing Manager or Financial Controller in 5 years’ time. You ask the ‘so what’ question and they can reply you with 10 good reasons to do so. Well, sounds good. They are very focused in their dream job, picking up the right networking and learn the right skills.

Then after 5 years, not surprising they achieve what they want. They celebrate and then tell their juniors how focus and perseverance get them to where they are today. Unfortunately, the celebration is short-lived because they suddenly realize that they were so technically good at their position…but that’s about all. They can’t move to a higher position such as General Manager due to lack of competency in other areas. As a result, they either stay where they are or they start learning other skills. Simply put, they do check their ‘so what’ question but have not checked ‘now what’. Simply put, ‘focus gets you where you want to go fast but also get stuck fast!’ A Ferrari gets you to the traffic jam faster!

So, it’s important to make sure that we don’t just aim to climb the mountain, but also think of what we want to do after that. Otherwise, the next step is only going down the hill!