You may have asked yourself more than once ‘what is my purpose on this earth?’ The age-old question that has been asked a multitude of times, even in the fourth century in Aristotle’s day.
And today we are still asking ourselves: ‘What is my purpose?’
Many people mistake a short-term goal as their purpose. Others lose their identity in their children, spouse, significant others, parents, job roles, titles and mistake that for their own purpose.
However, our purpose is the reason we do things, our sense of resolve for who we BE, our intention for engaging in something. Our purpose is a long-term focus that is meaningful to us and has an impact beyond our own existence.
In line with this month’s topic of creating a life by design and living with intention, this week we take a look at discovering our purpose and identifying the massive benefits that come with living a life on purpose!
If you just live your life to achieve goals (often not your own), tick boxes and accumulate material goods or wealth, this will not help you find your purpose. If we have no purpose, we leave ourselves wide-open to be pushed, pulled and manipulated by other people.
Without a clearly defined purpose, we tend to haphazardly stumble through life, flitting from one shiny object to the next, following the latest trends, being dictated to by others, or workplace cultures and traditions, and often get lost in the minutiae of daily life.
Purpose is not a destination, it’s a journey and a practice.
Our purpose empowers us to live a life of fulfillment and meaning beyond ourselves instead of just going through the motions and being controlled by others and external factors.
When we live a life true to our purpose, it informs, influences and inspires every thought, decision and action we make.
Discovering your purpose will enable you to experience more clarity in your life. You’ll feel a sense of passion, you’ll be more driven and you will take action with laser focussed attention.
How do you discover what your passion is, you ask?
In short you find the things that make you deeply happy and fulfilled, that cultivate the balance within you. To achieve this balance, you must master your self-awareness and emotional regulation.
Top Five Tips To Find Your Purpose:
∙Get to know your limiting beliefs – recognise the BS statements and excuses you repeatedly think and say. And then, reframe them.
∙Focus on accomplishing your purpose instead of short-term goals or tasks – your short-term goals will only provide a fleeting sense of achievement. Whereas focussing on your purpose will provide you with a sense of deep happiness, meaning and fulfillment in all areas of your life.
∙Think about what brings you joy – our ability to accomplish great things is connected to our ability to experience joy! When we are in a state of joy we experience flow with ease, and when we are in a state of flow our performance is enhanced. Experiencing joy optimises our performance.
∙Embrace and accept ALL of you – accept yourself for all of your awesomeness, foibles and limitations. Get to know your whole self. Learn, grow, develop, and get uncomfortable. Get to know yourself bit by bit. We all have limitations. No-one is perfect! Learn from mistakes, learn from others, reduce your ego, enhance your vulnerability, and above all, practice self-compassion.
∙Be Flexible – you must be willing to be flexible and listen to your innermost drivers, wants and needs. Your purpose grows throughout your life, morphs and changes. Allow yourself to experience this journey. Do not get caught up in your titles, roles or external validation as a mistaken purpose. When you listen to your internal wisdom, instead of seeking external validation, you’ll find the answer.
Discovering your purpose is not a one-time thing, this is a journey. A conscious intentional exploration of everything that is great about YOU! When you discover your purpose, you will soar onto great heights and live experiencing the very best that life can give!
Always live the life you want!
Christine and Elizabeth