If you're bored with life - you don't get up every morning with

Lou Holtz, the legendary coach and teacher of men, once said: “If you’re bored with life — you don’t get up every morning with a burning desire to do things — you don’t have enough goals.” These words, forged in the fires of competition, reach far beyond the football field. They are a call to awaken the spirit, a reminder that the difference between the weary and the inspired is not chance or fate, but the presence of clear purposes that drive one forward.

To be bored with life is not a condition of the world but of the soul. Life, in its vastness, always offers challenges, beauty, and opportunities. When one feels boredom, it is not that the earth has ceased to yield its wonders, but that one has ceased to seek them. Holtz declares that the remedy is not distraction or comfort, but goals — the shining targets that give direction to our steps, meaning to our struggles, and fire to our hearts.

The morning in his quote is the symbol of renewal. Each dawn offers a chance to rise with purpose, to carry the flame of desire into the day’s labors. Without goals, one rises sluggishly, dragged by the weight of monotony. With them, one rises eagerly, as a soldier awaiting battle, as a builder awaiting creation. Holtz reminds us that to live without goals is to deny the spirit the very fuel it needs to thrive.

History offers us vivid examples. Consider Alexander the Great, who wept when no more worlds were left to conquer. His sorrow was not from fatigue, but from the loss of a goal worthy of his ambition. Or think of Thomas Edison, who set himself not one invention, but thousands of experiments, each a small step toward a larger vision. It was not comfort that drove him, but an unending chain of goals that lit both his lamps and his soul. These stories prove Holtz’s words: men with goals live ablaze; men without them live in shadows.

There is also a hidden truth here: desire is born not of chance but of purpose. Many believe that passion appears by itself, but Holtz teaches that passion is cultivated through the pursuit of meaningful goals. When a man sets a clear vision before him, even hardship becomes exciting, for every obstacle becomes proof of progress. Without vision, even comfort becomes unbearable, for the soul withers without striving.

The lesson is clear: if you feel empty, do not ask the world to change, but ask yourself what you are striving toward. Set goals that test your strength, that demand growth, that stretch you beyond your limits. Let them be worthy of your effort — not shallow distractions, but noble pursuits that awaken your heart each morning. For it is in striving that life finds its joy.

Practical action flows easily: write your goals, revisit them daily, and let them guide your choices. Begin with small goals to ignite discipline, and let larger ones rise as your strength grows. Celebrate progress, not only results, for the path itself brings meaning. And above all, never let a day pass without knowing what you seek. For when the morning finds you with a burning desire, boredom will vanish, and your life will blaze with purpose.

Thus Lou Holtz’s words, spoken with the authority of a coach but carrying the weight of a philosopher, remind us of a timeless truth: life is not meant to be endured in boredom, but lived in pursuit. Children of tomorrow, remember this: set enough goals to awaken your desire, let every morning find you eager to begin, and you will never be bored, for your life will be a great and unending adventure.