EGF 1d would be nice, but it should be obvious from that phrasing that I'm not overly pushed about it and I know I'm not putting in enough of an effort to get there right now. Playing interesting games is far more important to me, rank will either come or not come, I don't really care so long as I'm having fun when I sit down at the go board.

I would like to be at whatever rank it takes to keep me from:

Playing moves I know don't work.
Sabotaging my own positions.
Using kiai as an excuse for really bad moves.
Looking at a board and wondering where the heck I'm supposed to play next, without any answers appearing.
Panicking.


I hear it may be a while.

I am not sure about the other points, but about these two - I would not be surprised if the top pros have the same experience still.
Its the beauty of Go, and when in each position you know exactly where to play - it would be sooo boring.

So careful what you wish for.

Oh... and panicking has nothing to do with strength, really, just with control. I know high-dans who panic at times, and beginners who never do.

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- Bantari
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WARNING: This post might contain Opinions!!

For me personally as my rank has grown, I have been able to enjoy the game more. While I have no set goal, these are the benefits I have found come with rank:

-Respect
-Broader number of people to teach to
-More enjoyment when playing due to a deeper understanding of the game
-Community: Since you really understand the game, you have something to bond over w/ other people. It's hard at 25k to really "be a part of" the Go community. Most of the time at that level you don't know what people are talking about.
-Feeling accomplished

Now, I think at 1D, you get "the most bang for your time" as far as benefits of rank. I think that is why it is such a popular goal. And many who are 1D+ started out w/ a goal of getting to 1D. In a broad sense, most people I know who run full Marathons first started w/ halfs. Fulls where a goal at one point, but mostly because they could already do it.

I think the same is for Go, we get to "1D" to really "get into" the game. At that point it's kinda a way of life and we just see where it goes.

A very small % of people truly believe they are going pro, so 1D is just a stepping stone. I don't think this is advisable as a course of action for anybody though. That would be a separate discussion though.