When You're Building Someone Else's Legacy

Most of us inherit our ambitions long before we ever question them.

We borrow dreams like hand-me-down clothes:

The respectable career
The sensible path
The version of success our culture hands out like a template

And because the people who gave us the blueprint loved us,
we never stopped to ask if it was ours.

But love is not direction.
Affection is not architecture.
And someone can care for you deeply
while steering you somewhere you were never meant to go.

The tragedy isn’t being lost.
The tragedy is being highly efficient at going nowhere meaningful.

You hit every milestone.
You impress the right people.
You ascend beautifully —
up the wrong mountain.

Before you take the next “logical step”:

Write down three pursuits you inherited, absorbed, or obeyed.
Ask the dangerous question:
“If no one would be disappointed, would I still want this?”
The answers will feel rebellious.
Let them.

Your life is not an heirloom.
It’s uncharted territory.

And God did not put you here to maintain someone else’s map.