Have you ever wondered about your purpose?  Have you heard that when you follow your passion, you can find your purpose?  That’s sound advice, but do you know how to start?  This brief guide will start you on the path to discovering your purpose.

We will focus on three steps:

1. Asking tough questions
2. Examining adversity
3. Facing intentional change

“Do you know how to find your purpose?”

If you posed that question to several people, the majority would likely answer no because there are countless possibilities. Often, people are afraid to try something new because they fear the unknown. Like you, they don’t know how to look for what they should be doing – for their purpose.

Questions to Ask

Question 1: “Is what I’m doing now satisfying to me?”

Set aside your financial obligations and your thoughts about your paycheck for a moment…

• Do you get a charge out of getting up every morning to go to work?
• How do you feel on Sunday evenings, assuming you start up work on Mondays?
• Do you dread getting up on Monday morning, or does it excite you?

Question 2: “Do I feel stuck doing something you don’t believe in?”

Suppose you work for a company that isn’t doing right by the community. It may be legal, but you don’t feel it’s ethical. It pays well, and that is why you stick with it. You even like many of the people who work there. However, the company sells products or services that just don’t resonate with you.  

At some point, it’s important to ask yourself whether the juice is worth the squeeze.  Can you continue working in an environment that doesn’t seem to fit your needs?

I found myself in that position just a few years ago.  Fortunately, before I found a new role, leadership changed, and the company transformed.

To find your purpose you will need to ask yourself what it will take to make changes to get out of your current situation and into something you enjoy.

It may require going back to school or at least, training online. Luckily, there are several options available, and many of them are inexpensive or free.

If you find that the path for you is clearly laid out, ask yourself whether you are willing to invest the time and make an effort to move down that path.

If you are not committed to that investment, you have not found your true purpose.

At this point, your options are clear – either continue what you are doing or find a new path.

Repeat this process until you find a path that’s worth following for you.

Explore your current situation and determine if you can change up your routine. You may want to ask your current company if there are other opportunities within the organization that you can explore.

If there are opportunities, could you pursue the new role or maybe propose a hybrid position to expand your skills and give you a feel for how the role may be more fulfilling?

Can Obstacles Help Define Your Purpose?

If you don’t know your purpose in life, look back on the obstacles you faced. How did you handle those challenges?

Some obstacles you have no choice but to work through. For instance, if you don’t pay your taxes, have no doubt the government will eventually find you. It’s rare that people get away with this. These are not the obstacles that define you. They are just annoyances to sort out.

You can choose to address or ignore other obstacles you face. Your choices help you define your purpose.

For instance, if you come across a problem at work that requires a skill you don’t yet have, you can either let someone else handle it or learn how to do it. Either way, the problem has to be solved. Your decision and this experience can carry you through and maybe even get you a promotion.

On the other hand, if you let others handle the problem because you weren’t qualified, you weren’t meant to find a solution. It is not part of your purpose.

You may believe that you can learn any skill, and to some degree that is true. However, if it is something you aren’t passionate about or isn’t something you desire to learn, it’s going to be difficult.

You won’t have a passion for everything that comes your way. In fact, you may feel the opposite about several of them.

When you are willing to do what it takes to overcome certain obstacles, you should evaluate the steps you took to make it happen.

Having the determination to overcome a barrier helps define your purpose, but your actions that led to the solution can also be telling. Don’t underestimate this as there may be hidden clues to understanding yourself better.

You may find that the outcome itself did not teach you much about your purpose, but something within your process told you a lot more about it.

The bigger the obstacle, the more defining it will be for you. Minor obstacles and everyday problems are not going to do much to help define your purpose, but how you go about overcoming them can be.

You may find that by stepping back and looking at these smaller challenges in aggregate that you do in fact gain a sense of purpose.  Maybe you’ll see some commonality among them gives you useful insight.

If you face obstacles that are too overwhelming, try to figure out why they make you feel this way. When you break it down, you may find the reasons are no longer valid.

You may have had a perception about something and made assumptions that you couldn’t handle the situation.  However, new experiences and your collected wisdom may help you see working your way out of the situation is not as difficult as you once believed. That too is part of what defines your purpose.

Finding Your Purpose May Require Change

The Greek philosopher Heraclitus was quoted as saying “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I have difficulty accepting change. However, it’s the one aspect of life we know will happen.

As Heraclitus said, change is going to happen whether we like it or not. If you don’t do well with change, it’s time to get more comfortable with changing.

What if you haven’t yet found your purpose because you have resisted change? That happens to a lot of us. We simply refuse to accept that something different is happening in their lives.

The good news is that we can adapt with relative ease. After a while, we have no choice but to accept most of the changes that happen in our life.

Consider your situation. People close to you will move on – one way or another. You will go through stages in your life. In the end, you will cherish the memories that you have.

There are unintended consequences in most changes that occur for you. For instance, your current boss may leave the company, and a new one is going to replace them. Maybe you enjoyed working for your old boss and are dreading the new one.

He or she could be someone you don’t like. Then again, the situation could now be beneficial to you. Perhaps you and the new boss think along similar lines, more so than your old boss. 

My experience with new supervisors has usually been better than I expected.  I always keep an open mind and look for positive possibilities.  It may be a good strategy for you, too.

One possible benefit of any change is that it may be just what is needed to help you find your purpose. If you are used to the same routine, and it doesn’t seem right for you, making a few small changes may give you the boost and desire you need to find something that is right for you.

I don’t like heights.  I know it’s totally irrational, but the fear is hard to shake.  Years ago, I decided that whenever possible I would put myself in situations that make me uncomfortable.  I climb ladders, walk close to the edge of balconies, go on the rooftop when needed.  This gives me confidence and reinforces my belief that my fear of heights is irrational.

Could you expose yourself to change more often? Some changes just happen to us, however, there are many that you can plan for.

For example, you can try to take an opposing point of view that you would never dare to in the past. If you favor a political party, speak with people from the opposite party. Try to keep an open mind when doing this and ask them how they chose that point of view.

By intentionally exposing yourself to change, you will become better at accepting it and learning from it. When this happens, you may be closer to discovering who you are and what is your purpose.

As American author, Mark Twain wrote, “The two most important days in your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why.”  Uncovering your purpose can be a difficult but worthy quest. 

I am hopeful that by asking yourself a few tough questions, evaluating how you’ve overcome some tough obstacles, and intentionally creating some small changes in your life, you’ll move closer to finding your purpose.

I wish you the very best.

Make it a great day!