The Game of Life is an expression used primarily to denote the interplay between the decisions we make and the outcomes we face.

Game of life… We move through it even since we become self-aware. Arriving at different squares one by one, including first car, graduation, marriage, first home, upgraded home, to eventually end up on the last square. We pick up and lose pegs along the way – first love, grandparents, partner, children, parents…

The set of squares our parents landed on seems to be quite different from our generation. The end goal of the game they played included owning a large home, multiple cars, retire and plant gardenias.

When evaluating our life using standards set by our parents, we don’t come close to their understanding of happiness.

• Our generation makes 10 cents less on every dollar our parents made (although daughters have a huge advantage over their mothers).

• An average single detached home size in Canada shrunk by 13%.

• The number of 20-something drivers dropped 10%.

• Three quarters of young Canadians do not think they will own a house in their lifetime.

But are we really worse off? It seems like our generation is making a trade-off. We are willing to give up certain squares to invent new ones and jump from one to the next one. These squares are our lifestyle and experiences.

Instead of owning a huge home, we prefer to have a place to hang our hat between trips all over the world.

Instead of owning a car, we prefer to use car-sharing services. We are more conscious of our surroundings and the environment, so the knowledge affects our choices.

So perhaps, instead of judging our success and failures in the Game of Life according to the rules set by our predecessors, we should redefine them and create our own set of rules.

Here at AW, we believe in constantly re-examining conventional measures of progress. If milestones like a marriage and parenthood, and possessions like a car and a house were the squares of past generations, what do our squares look like today? More specifically, what can your squares look as you create your own game?

We would love for you to share some of the rules you have redefined in your life, and how they have brought you closer to the end game of happiness. Sound off in the comments section below!

Learn be decisive and move through the Game of Life with a newfound confidence by completing our Be the Best You Life Event.