What is my Life purpose? This has got to be one of the most frequently asked questions we pose to ourselves, which is often answered by the words… “I don’t know.” Some of us go through life without thinking about it, while others have this constant urge to find the real reason for being here. As we get older, if we have not yet discovered it, the question seems to get louder and more repetitive in our heads.
My Story
I recently lost my brother to ALS after 2 years of him fighting for his life. As my brain wrestled with and tried to make sense of his death, I again got to thinking about “life purpose.” What purpose do we serve here within this lifetime? What was his life’s purpose? Although I was not scheduled to do his Eulogy at the Memorial service, I decided at the last minute to do one. I wanted to summarize what he meant to me, and the purpose he served in my life while he was here.
Having done that, I then sat back and listened to others share their experience of him. It was amazing. I was able to see a common thread running through all the memorials of him. He was a fun person; he loved to play tricks on people; he enjoyed making people laugh. As I listened to these, I thought, “could it be that that was his life purpose on this earth? Was he even aware of what he was doing while here?”
What I believe
I believe we all have a purpose for being here. We serve a unique purpose, and we were all created to fulfill a specific role in some people’s lives, that no one else can. Many of us however die without ever knowing our life purpose. Can you imagine how different our lives would be if we lived it like we knew we served a purpose? Our lives would become far more meaningful and fulfilled as we start to live “on purpose.” Think of how inspired and motivated you would be if you knew with absolute certainty, that you were doing exactly what you were created to do; that thing that you were genetically wired for.
At this point you may be saying to yourself, “yes I believe I have a life purpose but, how do I know what my Purpose is?” I believe we all have to explore this on our own, knowing that this may not be a one time discovery, but instead a process of discovery. Do not be discouraged if you are not able to see the entire picture right away, it will unfold as you progress. I have 4 questions that I use to help me figure out what my life purpose really is.
4 Questions To Finding Your Life Purpose
- What am I passionate about?
Since passion is an emotion, this will apply to both positive and negative emotions. Ask yourself “what are those things that excite me, bring joy, exhilaration, make me come alive, and energize me. It might be as simple as seeing the smiles on children’s faces, or being that ear when someone just wants to vent. Then ask your self what are those things that make me angry, make me want to get out there and do something, make a difference. It might be children being hungry, neglected or being abused.
- What do others say about me?
Get the honest opinion of others that are close to you, about what your strengths are. We all have our blind spots when it comes to seeing ourselves, and so we need the help of others around us who know us, and can be objective and honest in telling us what we are good at. They may say “you have always been good with children” or “you have a big heart for injustice around the world” or “you just have a way of making people smile.” These will all give you a clue of your natural inclinations from a spectator’s viewpoint.
- What are my gifts?
Often when we get this question, the first thing that comes to our minds is to say ‘I am not good at anything,” but stop for a moment to ask yourself “what are those things that come naturally to me, and others have complimented me on them occasionally?” I am often hard on myself and so I know there are a lot of you that are just like me. But I have found that when I take the time to examine my life, I can find lots of things that I am good at. Now you may not be an Einstein or a Motzart, but if you find that you are on the bus or anywhere for that matter, and complete strangers are repeatedly pouring their hearts out to you and within 15 minutes of meeting them, you know their complete life story, it may be that you are a good listener. Or it may be that everywhere you go, children seem to gravitate towards you and before you know it you, you are down on your knees giving them horse rides, or playing doll house with them. It may be, that you are good with kids. So take a few minutes and list those gifts, you may surprise yourself. Sometimes, some of the very things that you got you in trouble for as a kid, turn out to be some of you biggest gifts. For example; always talking in class; needing to be on stage; speaking up in the face of perceived injustice; defending the child being bullied.
- What is the common thread?
The next step is to look at the answers to all three of these questions and identify the common thread that runs through them. This should help you to figure out what your purpose in life is. You may find that you are fulfilling that in the current job you are in, and it may cause you to have a different attitude to the job. You may be prompted to take steps to further explore things you can do to start living your life on purpose. Let’s take a moment and look at the examples I gave in each of the three steps above. If these examples applied to a specific person, it would be obvious that this person should serve children. She is great with kids; children gravitate towards her; she becomes energized by the bright smiles on children’s faces and is angry when children are hurt and abused; others have always told her that she is good with children. It may not be immediately clear what your exact role would be, but as you move forward in your purpose, you become energized and confident, doors and opportunities begin to open up for you, and your life begins to change.
We must recognize however that our life purpose need not be something grandiose or elaborate. Not everybody will be a Martin Luther King or a Mother Teresa or a Ghandi. We may just be that person that inspires confidence in others with a simple word or a simple smile. You may be that person who is compassionate and warm and makes people want to be around you. One of the last mental images I have of my brother is a huge boyish grin on his face, as he lay there in the bed unable to move any part of his body besides his head. How could you not smile back? He was no international figure, but he served his purpose here on earth; to make people smile. How are you fulfilling your life purpose today?
