Caycee Benesch

Eng1100
April 1, 2015
Benchmarks in the Future
The future can be something that not many people like to think about but its
important to think about how your future may turn out. Meeting all your goals and
accomplishments may not always be as obtainable as they seem. On the other hand, you
may have a very high chance of getting the job you want, the family you dream of having
or the goals you wish to accomplish. Everybodys idea of what the good life is may differ
but there are three components that most peoples goals have in common. Having their
dream job, a family and being able to be happy are things that cause people to believe
they have achieved the good life.
In order to write this paper, I had to conduct a survey of three people on what
their goals to accomplish were in the next 10 years. I asked them where they saw
themselves ten years from where they currently are as well as what goals they wish to
have accomplished by that time. All three of them had three of the same things that
seemed to be the center of their lives when they were older. I noticed that all of them had
very high hopes for a successful and well-paying job as well as a family that is healthy
and loving. They also all listed happiness as an ultimate goal of their future. I think these
three things go to show that the good life varies from person to person but still runs along
the same general lines. Believing that these benchmarks are possible for them in the
future will give them hope to accomplish everything they have set for themselves.

A career is a definite goal for most people and is a huge benchmark in the lives of
those who strive to have their dream job. Sarah Lacost, one of the interviewees was very
adamant about getting her dream job before any of her other benchmarks were met. Jobs
are an important aspect of the good life and the fact that all three interviewees stated that
their jobs is huge portion of happiness, explains why so many people strive for it. Finding
your dream job right out of school may be difficult, as it is often times hard to obtain
even after gaining experience. According to Lindsay Olson, a writer for the US News,
often times recent graduates give up on their dream job search because they cannot get
hired right out of college (Olson). Continuing to search for the job of your dreams would
benefit you in the long run because while looking, you can gain experience in your field
by working in the field. People have also realized that they actually love the job they get
while looking for their ideal job. The needs or desires of people change throughout their
lives so sometimes, their dream job may be different later in life. A dream job when one
is 20 may not be viewed the same at age 40. Brett Nelson, a contributor of Forbes, maps
out the components of what makes a job, a dream job. Things such as compensation,
satisfaction and opportunity make up the top three components and have the biggest
impact on whether or not you should consider it a dream job for you (Nelson). The top
three things that make up dream jobs all kind of speak for themselves. Satisfaction is
huge in having a job that you love because one would have to spend at least 40 hours a
week doing what they do. People who have what they consider to be their dream job
report an overall better rating of their life than those who do not think they have their
dream job. Overall, obtaining your dream job can be difficult but keeping at it can be
rewarding throughout the rest of your life.

Another component that people often mention when they talk about their ideal
future is family. Another interviewee, Ally Krajnak, found her family to be the main
component of her idea of the good life. Ally had said that without her family, her job,
income, and overall happiness would fall drastically. Many people would like to be
married and starting a family by the age of 30 in todays age. Obviously people would
prefer to be married before having kids, which is something that is highly likely in
todays society. According to John Chase, a former lawyer for the family courts (now
deceased), the stats on families today are looking good for todays generation. The chance
for women to be married by the age of 30 is at 68% and at 56% for men (Chase). The
chance of being married by the age of 30 is highly likely in America and can be
accomplished. As for having children, that may be another story. According to Info
Please, a well-known statistics website, the chances of having more than 2 children is
low. In 2006, 14% of households had a 4-person family, including two parents and two
children. When you move over to a 5-person household, the percentage drops to 6% (Info
Please). The graph may indicate that there are more 4-person households because couples
are choosing to have less children but it also means that the economy may not be suitable
for couples to have more than 2 kids. Family is something that people will always strive
for, regardless of whether or not they want a large one or a small one. Everyone can
accomplish creating a family.
Happiness is one of the biggest factors in the good life and almost everyone
would like to be happy with their future. My third interviewee was very hung up on
happiness. Katie Biga did not have a set-in-stone plan when I was interviewing her but
she did know that whatever she decides on, she wants to be happy with. On thing people

are always worried about for their future is whether or not the things you want now, will
make you happy in the future. Dr. Timothy Sharp, a speaker for the Happiness Institute,
says that if you feel that you could be living a life that is more fulfilling, you are not truly
happy (Sharp). Those who feel they are missing something in their lives cannot consider
themselves happy according to Dr. Sharp. In order to be able to live a more fulfilling life
you must be willing to learn and have a desire to be happy with you life. Sharp also says
anyone can be happy as long as they are willing to be open to new experiences. In
Bloomberg Business, a magazine also known as BusinessWeek, explains how to achieve
happiness in adulthood when you have a family and a career. There is an incredibly high
correlation between people's happiness and meaning at work and at home. In other words,
those who experience happiness and meaning at work tend also to experience them
outside of work (Bloomberg Business). If the other components of life such as family
and career make you feel like you are satisfied, you are more likely to be able to obtain
happiness. The correlation between these factors and happiness is large because the
things that surround you on a daily basis create happiness. Having a job that makes you
feel like you make a difference and a family that makes you proud are all things that
make someone happy. Without a great job and a wonderful family, one cannot obtain
happiness.
When I conducted an interview to see what people thought their life would be like
in 10 years, I wasnt surprised by their answers. Typically, people would like to have their
career be something that they have worked for and wanted for a long time. They would
also prefer to be at the higher paying scale of the job of their choosing and would love to
be successful. The people I interviewed valued their career and had high goals set for

themselves in the future. From the research I did and elaborated on previously, the jobs
that they hope to have someday are achievable if they keep their standards high and work
hard for it. Their family goals were also similar. Although they wanted a different amount
of children, they hoped to be married and beginning a family in the next 10 years of their
lives. We saw that being married by 30 years old was a high probability. As for children,
the amount one can have by the age of 30 is limited so they may not be able to have 3
children in the next 10 years. The one thing that all of the people I interviewed said is that
they need to be happy in their future. Happiness is created through self-achievement and
love. By having the job of their dreams and a family that loves them, they are bound to be
happy.
The good life is different for everyone but all can achieve it by having these three
components in their life. A career that makes you feel like you made a difference is what
most people would consider to be satisfying. A family that is happy and loves each other
is also an ideal for most people. Happiness is created by the other two factors. People
need to be willing to notice that their lives need change in order to be satisfied with their
life as a whole. Everyones goal can be met with hard work and it is entirely possible to
have all three components in ones life.

Works Cited
Chase, John. "Marriage and Divorce Statistics." Avvo.com. Avvo Inc., 12 Apr. 2010. Web.
09 Apr. 2015.
"How Adults Achieve Happiness." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 10 Dec. 2009. Web. 09
Apr. 2015.
Nelson, Brett. "How To Find Your Dream Job." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 28 Feb. 2013.
Web. 09 Apr. 2015.
Olson, Lindsay. "How to Get Hired for Your Dream Job." US News. US News and World
Report, 23 Apr. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2015.
Sharp, Timothy. "What Is And How Can You Achieve Happiness?" (2005): n. pag.
Www.thehappinessinstitute.com. The Happiness Institute, 2005. Web. 2 Apr. 2015.
"US Household by Size." Infoplease. Infoplease, 2007. Web. 09 Apr. 2015.