Top-down and bottom-up

I've spent a lot of time analyzing top-down and bottom-up approaches to creating the life one wants. Approaches to keep dreaming, and also successfully meeting goals. 

       A goal of having needs met, or a goal of being happy are very broad. These are more top. 

       Things like spending quality time with loved ones, being committed to being involved in the causes that are important to us, taking time to reflect and be alone, engaging in creative activities, seek out nature, be physically active or engage in wellness activities together, give to others. These are less broad, but they are still relatively broad.

        Then you have the things at the bottom; what is the quality time you spend with your loved ones? There is time spent relaxing together; reflecting and having deep expressive conversations with one another; there is time spent being active together; there's time spent volunteering together; time spent together that is adventurous; time spent going on random spontaneous adventures together; Time spent taking in entertainment. Together; time spent breaking bread together; time spent sitting silently together. Relatively, these are far less broad, and more bottom in a bottom up approach. 

       I think it's important to be able to understand, express and analyze both. Especially because the thing is we don't need everything to have the same amount to feel happiness. One thing might just be a little small cup, maybe even a cup that could be replaced quite simply with two other cups, but both the quantitative and qualitative factors matter.

       I am such a dreamer, I love whimsical musings. But I also know that if one is not reflective and conscious of both the forest and the trees, they might end up putting in more effort, pouring more in and maybe even overfilling the wrong cup in the pursuit of a feeling but missing it anyway. 

       For example, taking in entertainment is a common little cup people overfill when it's another cup that actually needs filling. Maybe they don't put it there because it's hard. Maybe they don't put it there because they just haven't noticed. Maybe, they don't put it there because they're avoiding it because they're afraid of what it means about them for that little cup to not be filled to a certain standard. 

      See both the forest and the trees, my loves.