Many of today’s graduates are about to make the same mistake Matthew Emmons made during the 2004 Olympics.

It’s commencement season for high school and college seniors. The future may be unknown, but graduates know what they want in their future — money.

A 2025 poll by Harvard Political Review asked young Americans to identify their important goals. More than 86% chose financial security. Around three in four selected owning a home, a tangible sign of financial well-being. Just 57% thought getting married was an essential pursuit. That was just a hair ahead of accumulating “significant wealth” at 56%. Less than half said having children was important.

But before aiming at those goals, look at what happened to the 23-year-old Emmons during the Athens Olympics.

Emmons competed as a USA rifle shooter. He won gold in the men’s 50m Rifle Prone — using a teammate’s rifle after someone had tampered with his. His second event was the Men’s 50m Rifle 3 positions. He shot well and made the finals. He and the other seven competitors would fire 10 shots from a standing position. Through nine shots, he had a commanding lead.

To win a second gold medal, he didn’t need a bullseye. He only needed to hit near the center of the target. He calmed his breathing, aimed and fired.

But there was a problem. After Emmons pulled the trigger, the electronic scoring device didn’t award him any points. He turned to the officials, confused.

“I shot,” he said.

He had indeed fired his rifle. And the shot would have scored high enough to win the gold medal — but he had aimed at the wrong target. He was in Lane 2, but he had hit the target in Lane 3.

“On that shot, I was just worrying about calming myself down and just breaking a good shot, and so I didn’t even look at the number,” Emmons said. “I probably should have. I will from now on.”

That should be a sobering thought for graduates. Like Emmons, you have put in countless hours of preparation. Your degree is tangible evidence of your ability. You stand on the cusp of accomplishing great things.

But it doesn’t matter how skilled or hard-working you are if you’re headed towards the wrong goal.

Think about money. It’s obviously important. You’ll need it to buy food, clothes, shelter and transportation. It can also buy luxuries like vacations, concert tickets and ATVs. But note this. Money isn’t the goal. Money’s usefulness is indirect — it allows you to obtain other things.

This is where many young people go wrong. They see something important as a “means” and make it their “end.” Think about it this way. A career that provides for a family is meaningful — no matter your job. But making your career your life goal is the path to burnout and loneliness.

People are made for purpose and community, not merely to climb the corporate ladder.

Consider the rest of Emmons’ story. After losing the gold medal in heartbreaking and humiliating fashion, he sat in a nearby beer garden. Suddenly, he felt someone tap his shoulder. It was Czech shooter Katerina Kurkova and her father, who sympathized with him and gave him words of encouragement. That interaction — in the pit of unimaginable professional failure — sparked a budding personal relationship. They later started dating and married in 2007, eventually having four children.

“Had I not made that mistake, maybe I retire from shooting, maybe I don’t marry Katy,” Emmons said. “I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Those are the words of a man who’s aiming at the right target.

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