> You should do things to try to have a happy life from day to day, not to "get somewhere".
I read an article a while ago that resonated very strongly with me, particularly this bit:
It is Mr Rottenberg’s view that the current vogue for the “pursuit of happiness” may perversely push certain people towards depression. Happiness, he argues, is the result of achieving a goal, rather than a goal itself. He cites recent evidence suggesting that depression or low mood can be triggered by setting unobtainable goals. Rather than becoming depressed because of underachievement, he suggests that perhaps depression is an overcommitment to goals that cannot be reached.
http://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21600653-callin...
> Being "great" in our culture typically accounts to beating hundreds of people, so by definition for every person who succeeds there will be hundreds of "loosers".
Mostly in sports, which obviously is artificial. In real life, very few things are actually zero-sum. Who are the "losers" that Einstein beat? MLK, Ghandi? Jimi Hendrix?
In general, I think your comment contains a false dichotomy. Yes, it's extremely unlikely that yours will become a household name for generations to come, but the alternative isn't that you're forgotten. Be something positive for someone else - start a family and be a good parent: whatever your children achieve (even if it's similarly modest) you will have had a part in that. Be a good friend, spouse, lover. Start a business, provide good jobs for your employees. Build a good library/tool that you and your peers need. You can easily touch dozens and hundreds of lives, but in a small way, and they then build on top of that. Just because they don't build you a statue on the town square, it doesn't mean your work is undone.