Do You Know Your Life Purpose?

Do you know your life purpose? Does it matter?

If someone asked you today, what is your life purpose, how would you answer? Do you know? Most of us don’t take the time to think about it. But, knowing the answer can be the peace of mind that you’ve been looking for.

Become aware of your “values”

In order to discover your life purpose you first have to discover your ‘core values.’ A value is an internal motivation that matters to YOU. It could be that every waking moment for you is about providing for your kids and nothing else matters. Perhaps, what drives you is positive feedback from your supervisor or significant other. In order to determine your core values, try answering these:

If you could only accomplish one thing this entire month, what would it be? And, why?
If you could go back to your senior year in high school with your whole life before you, what would you do differently this time around?

When you answer these question honestly it will help you narrow down your core values. What patterns do you see in your answers? What was your energy like when answering?

List themes that you noticed when answering the questions. Items that resonated with you as you thought them through.

Creating your list

The list you create will be uniquely yours. It is a snapshot in time reflecting your current circumstances. The values also serve as signposts for finding your life purpose.

A sample list might look like this:

Success/financial growth/power
Time/mindfulness/outdoors
Adventure/travel/experiences
Feedback/recognition/empowerment

Don’t judge

Your values are yours alone. Do not judge them by thinking that you “should” value something else. If you value power at this juncture in your life, so be it. Honesty is the key here.

From values to purpose

With your list of values fresh in your mind, try answering these questions:

If you won the lottery tomorrow and you no longer needed to work for a living, what would you do with your time?
When you close your eyes and imagine a perfect life, what are the things that are included? Visualize those things in great detail.
What is the gift that you believe you have, or that others have acknowledged, that you would most like to share with the world?

Once you have answered the questions look for patterns. Did something similar come up in several of the answers? Did you notice a central theme? How many of the answers honored the items on your list of core values?

Bringing it all together

Now, take the answers to the questions above, the list of core values that you just did and narrow them down to a simple “life purpose sentence.”

For example:

“My purpose is to gain financial freedom so that I can create an adventurous life and build a better world for my kids.”

“My purpose is to slow down and be more present so I can spark creative gifts and create amazing things.”

Remember, values and purpose are fluid. Allow them to evolve as you grow and as your circumstances change. This will help you stay on track with living your life purpose for the long haul.

Conclusion

This is obviously a very simplistic method of determining a life purpose; but, the goal is to get you thinking about it. When you do you will learn to live “on purpose” and that is freeing. You will find peace that you had only imagined in the past.

The best part of this is that you don’t have to look outside of yourself to find it. You don’t honor your values by having a particular job of life, you honor your values by living them in the job and life that you already have. You have the power to live on purpose, right now, in this moment.

And that is the most empowering knowledge of all.

Cynthia Corsetti is an Executive Coach and Speaker. If you’d like to learn more on how her C.A.R.E. to Engage system can help you create an engaged workforce in your organization, you can email her at: [email protected]

PS..Jump on over and join my private facebook group called Free Yourself Be Yourself — It’s an uplifting and empowering party over there, and it’s about all things related to your career!