Don't ask yourself what the world needs.
Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that.
Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
A Sense of Purpose
Why are you on here on Earth? What makes your life meaningful? People who maintain a strong sense of purpose generally:
|
|
Some lucky few feel a strong "calling" from an early age. And parents often report that while the actual job of parenting can be a real chore, it's all worth it because of the meaning their children bring to their lives. Having a deep religious faith can give one a strong sense of purpose.
But many people don't give this much thought, and then gradually start to notice a sense of pointlessness to their lives. They go to work, they come home, and spend the evening watching television, night after night. Some people don't think about it until they are at the end of their life. No one on their death bed ever says, "I wish I'd spent more time shopping and buying junk I didn't need.", or "I wish I'd spent more time surfing the internet and catching up on celebrity gossip."
How do you want to spend your time? How do you want to spend your life? A good way to get started thinking about this is to take the 80/20 Audit.
I worked with a woman named Carly who came to see me because she was feeling stuck, bored, and slightly depressed. Nothing was really wrong, but nothing was really right, either. She has an office job that she doesn't love, but doesn't hate. She was living in a nice apartment with a big garden. She's single but kind of OK with that. She has friends. But there was no passion in her life, and not much joy.
We examined how she spends her time outside of work. We looked at what has given her a lot of pleasure in the past. She realized that her peak experiences throughout her whole life have usually involved engaging in community activities and traveling. She loves books and movies about other countries. And yet she was pretty "lazy" about getting out and doing new things or planning trips.
She decided: My goal is to get out into the world more, both locally and beyond. She agreed to spend several months “trying this out.” Focusing on this goal, Carly:
They say you can have anything you want, but you can't have everything you want. I think that's true for most people -- we have to let go of some things in order to get other things. Carly uses her goal to help her make decisions every day about what she eats, wears and reads; about how she works, what she spends her money on, and who she spends time with.
But many people don't give this much thought, and then gradually start to notice a sense of pointlessness to their lives. They go to work, they come home, and spend the evening watching television, night after night. Some people don't think about it until they are at the end of their life. No one on their death bed ever says, "I wish I'd spent more time shopping and buying junk I didn't need.", or "I wish I'd spent more time surfing the internet and catching up on celebrity gossip."
How do you want to spend your time? How do you want to spend your life? A good way to get started thinking about this is to take the 80/20 Audit.
I worked with a woman named Carly who came to see me because she was feeling stuck, bored, and slightly depressed. Nothing was really wrong, but nothing was really right, either. She has an office job that she doesn't love, but doesn't hate. She was living in a nice apartment with a big garden. She's single but kind of OK with that. She has friends. But there was no passion in her life, and not much joy.
We examined how she spends her time outside of work. We looked at what has given her a lot of pleasure in the past. She realized that her peak experiences throughout her whole life have usually involved engaging in community activities and traveling. She loves books and movies about other countries. And yet she was pretty "lazy" about getting out and doing new things or planning trips.
She decided: My goal is to get out into the world more, both locally and beyond. She agreed to spend several months “trying this out.” Focusing on this goal, Carly:
- moved to a smaller, cheaper apartment so she has more money for travel. This meant she had to give up her big, beautiful garden, but she enjoys traveling more than she enjoys gardening. She still maintains a small container garden.
- joined a Meetup group of like-minded people who enjoy exploring things to do in her city and state.
- joined another Meetup group of people who like to travel.
- cancelled her FB page for now (she was spending too much time living vicariously).
- set up a travel account at her bank.
- found inexpensive ways to travel and lodge (she uses couchsurfing.com).
- streamlined and automated her housekeeping, errands, and bill-paying so things run smoothly while she's traveling.
- spent time at the library researching her next adventures.
- held a yard sale to sell anything she didn't absolutely love, and used the money to finance a long-weekend trip.
- went through her whole wardrobe and culled a lot of her clothes that don't "travel" well.
- cooked and ate at home more often, because she'd rather save her money for traveling. Every time she she cooks instead of going to a restaurant or ordering takeout she puts money into her travel account.
- took an online bluprint.com course about keeping a travel journal/sketchbook.
- talked to her boss about restructuring her job so she can work remotely some of the time, allowing her time to travel more.
They say you can have anything you want, but you can't have everything you want. I think that's true for most people -- we have to let go of some things in order to get other things. Carly uses her goal to help her make decisions every day about what she eats, wears and reads; about how she works, what she spends her money on, and who she spends time with.
How do you want to spend your time?
