Are You Living On Purpose?
“How are you choosing to invest your precious life energy?”
I was asking myself this question at the ripe old age of twenty-six. I had landed a fantastic job in corporate communications, which allowed me to travel to places I never knew existed. I enjoyed being in a creative field where I got to express my gifts and talents.
But something was missing. I was lacking a clear sense of direction and purpose. My work as a producer was helping Fortune 500 companies motivate their top salespeople to sell more products and make more money, but I felt an emptiness inside, a longing to make a bigger contribution to the greater good, a deep desire to make a positive impact. But how?
The Quest for Meaning and Purpose
My search for deeper meaning led me to some amazing and mystical places. I started asking those big existential questions like…
If everyone and everything dies, what really matters?
What, if anything, do we take with us beyond this life?
How do we measure success on a soul level?
What can I do to with my one precious life to make the most positive impact for myself and others?
I stumbled across the Venn diagram above, which inspired me to reflect on the following questions:
What do you love (in other words, what do you genuinely value)?
What does the world need right now?
What are you good at (or where do your talents lie)?
What can you be paid for (i.e. what do others value and how can you be of service for the highest good)?
In my case, my purpose is about blending my unique skills and talents (communications, consciousness, creativity and connection) to be of service to the higher good. There are lots of ways I can do this -- it’s less about the “what” and more about the “why.”
Many of my clients are making major decisions about where they want to go in their next level in life. Connecting with their soul’s purpose helps them navigate their direction with confidence.
Are you on track toward your life purpose? Take the quiz and find out!
Your Purpose is Discovered Not Chosen
“While goals are chosen, a purpose is discovered. Our purpose is something we have been doing all along, and will continue to do, regardless of circumstances, until the day we die.”
— Peter McWilliams
Discovering Your Purpose
According to Peter McWilliams, author of my partner Kristjan’s favorite book of all time, Life 101 (available in PDF form here):
“A purpose is something you discover. It's already there. It's always been there. You've lived your life by it -- perhaps without fully realizing it. (Although when you do realize it, you'll know you've known it all along.)
It's your bellwether, your personal inner divining rod. It tells you, in any given moment, whether you're living your life "on purpose" or not.
A purpose is a simple, positive statement of why you are here. It usually begins, "I am " and is only a few words long.
It is not a goal. A goal is something that can be reached. A purpose is a direction, like east. No matter how far east you travel, there's still lots more east to go.
Purposes can be used for selecting goals, just as someone traveling east can select certain cities as guideposts along the eastward journey.
A purpose is never achieved; it is fulfilled in each moment you are "on purpose." You use your purpose to set your course in life. It's your inner compass. When you are "on course," you are "on purpose."
What does it really mean to live your life on purpose?
For me, it means making choices that are in alignment with my heart’s highest values.
I believe it’s essential for our mental and emotional health to take time out on an occasional basis to re-evaluate our priorities and re-aim our intentions, making sure we’re heading in the direction we want to be going.
I invite you to download my free eBook, the Core Values Checklist, as a valuable tool to help you clarify what’s most important to you and live a life that is fully aligned with your values.
Enjoy the process of self-discovery!
P.S. This August, I’m officially celebrating 20 years in private practice in the Pacific Northwest! If you’re a client or have benefitted from my YouTube videos and haven’t yet left me a review, please consider doing so here — it means the world to me! Thank you! https://g.page/r/CfVx0Rz1nKmEEBE/review