When I was in my mid-twenties I read "What Color Is Your Parachute" by Richard Bowles. All I remember was his project about writing your philosophy of life. Two of the tenets are still with me.

Choosing an ideal "larger than life" reminds me of an aim versus a goal. Goals are finite. Aims are infinite and are their own reward. Check out James P. Carse's "Finite and Infinite Games" - one of the best non-fiction books I've ever read.

You and he think along similar lines. I tip my turban to you...