Purpose is not a goal. Purpose is not a plan. Purpose is a journey. Purpose is the DIRECTION of your most fulfilling life.
How does purpose work?
This single myth can lead to identity crises every time you succeed (or fail) at a big goal. Knowing your purpose is a point on the compass means that defining it can help you navigate your journey every single day.
When you let go of the “achievement” piece around purpose, you get to stop postponing the feelings of living on purpose, and start feeling them today and everyday.
I know what you’re thinking… you’re thinking: “if it’s that simple… if it’s that cut and dry… then Why does it feel so big and confusing?”
We are not talking about the purpose for the world’s existence – everyone is allowed their own answer for that one.
Yes, you may have a deep connection to some divine wisdom, which may be helpful in determining your purpose; but the fear I see people develop is that they don’t have a purpose yet. Like they were picked last or forgotten by God or the universe in the game of cosmic kickball.
You are not alone. You were not forgotten. You have a gift… you just need practice seeing it.
Your purpose has woven itself through your unconscious life since your formative years.
But it’s not a single unchanging pillar of marble.
Your purpose has layers.
A purpose rarely shows itself entirely at first. You get glimpses of purpose throughout life. If you commit yourself to taking steps toward it, you will find that you don’t need to know HOW
When we reach a new breakthrough, it’s time to dig deeper.
At each level there are new skills, new joys, new challenges, new relationships, and new realizations that will help us in some level further along in our lives.
Follow your compass, don’t rush through a level, and when the compass comes up funny… it’s time to dig deeper… and it’s time to celebrate.
One of the big myths is that Purpose is about Tomorrow. Actually, purpose is about everyday.
Time is slippery. We let it get away from us when we believe in the myth of “tomorrow.” Goals in the distance are incredibly important, but only so we can extrapolate down to the steps directly in front of our feet.
We love Superman because he can fly right up to the peak; but he doesn’t have to take the small steps. You may be great at envisioning the peak and wanting desperately to get there; but the real super men are the ones who have a strong enough vision to get up and hike each day in the right direction, knowing the peak will be there when they are ready.
It takes real guts to see the baby steps and commit to the journey.
I’d like to propose a different distinction for Purpose. Any time I hear about life “purpose” it reminds me, painfully so, of how I started many things hoping they would fulfill a purpose that fulfilled me. None ever did. Then I realized I was going about it in the wrong way (at least for me.) In associating my purpose with a “doing” I effectively was chasing a rainbow. No matter how hard and passionately I tried to pursue my purpose, it always felt hollow and moved further away. In any case, I chose instead to redefine what purpose meant for… Read more »
How do I make my life better? That’s not how I live … It’s how I can help to make others better. Once I made he change in my life where life is not all about ME, I became to a peace within me.
Well said Tom –and I have also found the same to be true for me.