What Is Your Purpose?

The first step on this journey towards living with a purpose is deciding that it is a worthwhile endeavor. I hope the first two blog posts in this series have convinced you of that. The next step is to figure out what exactly your purpose in life is. It’s a pretty big question, isn’t it? I wish I had just the right answer for you, but the truth is that our life’s purpose is different for all of us. There is no quiz you can take that spits out the answer. It’s something you have to discover for yourself. I do, however, have a few thoughts to share with you that will guide you along the way. In the end, your purpose is very much like true love. You will know when you’ve found it.

What Are You Passionate About?

Start by thinking about all the different things you are passionate about. It doesn’t matter if it’s part of your current work or career, a cause, a hobby, or anything else you can think of. Make a list and keep adding to it as you come across more ideas. Maybe it’s restoring old cars, redecorating your home, or sewing historical costumes. This is a living document; you will continue to add to this list as you discover your passions.

What Do You Value?

Another good approach for coming up with potential “purpose” ideas is to think about what you really value. What’s important to you? What do you feel would make a difference? Maybe you value the right of every child to grow up in a happy home and make it your life’s purpose to raise foster kids or adopt. Maybe you value animal rights and make it your mission to raise awareness about the low number of wild giraffes in Africa. Or, maybe you value education and life in such a way that you will reach out to share what you learn, know, and care about.

What Elicits A Strong Emotional Response?

Similarly, think about what makes you really happy, really angry, or really sad. Having something with a strong emotion attached is a good sign that you’re very passionate about it and that this particular cause or purpose is important to you. Maybe it’s a passion for your love of playing piano, your passion for heirloom tomato gardening, or your burning desire to put a stop to human trafficking. What experiences energize you? Where do you find your Power of Zeal?

What’s Fun

Last but not least, think about what you enjoy doing. There’s nothing wrong with finding a purpose that is also enjoyable. In fact, it’s important that you like what you do and are having fun doing it. If it isn’t fun, it’s much harder to put in the work and effort required to reach your goals.

Of course, not every task and every aspect of what you do will be fun. Overall though, you want to find a purpose and a project that has you excited to jump out of bed in the morning. You want to find a purpose that you will want to commit to working towards, one that will fulfill your desires, passions, and life's mission.

Today, spend some time compiling your list of ideas, activities, and experiences that you are passionate about; remember, this will be a living document that you will continue to add to as you experience and discover new things.

 Have fun with this! Please go over to the Facebook group and share some of your ideas...tell us what you are passionate about.

Cheers!

Lisa

 P. S. Here's the system I use to organize my notes, journals, and courses.

  Affiliate Compensation Disclosure: From time to time, we promote, endorse, or suggest products or services of others. In most cases, we will be compensated, either as an affiliate with a commission based on sales, or with a free product to review or use. Our recommendations are always based on (i) our personal belief in the high quality and value of the product or service, and (ii) our review of the product or service, or a prior relationship or positive experience with the sponsoring person or organization.