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Quit Finding Your Purpose
We’re constantly bombarded by motivation from experts online and offline, urging us to find our purpose and live meaningfully. Quotes like, “If you have a strong purpose in life, you don’t have to be pushed. Your passion will drive you there” (Roy T. Bennett) or “The person without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder” (Thomas Carlyle).
Do you feel the pressure? I certainly did.
I was fortunate to attend numerous workshops on life purpose and meet inspiring individuals who shared their personal stories. Many were just like you and me, yet they radiated purpose and passion in everything they did. Their dedication to making a difference left me in awe. I felt small in comparison, so I embarked on a journey to find my own grand purpose. I read books, sought advice, and participated in exercises and workshops, but I still couldn’t pinpoint my WHY.
I had it all wrong. Purpose isn’t something you hunt down and assign to yourself; There’s nothing to find, it finds you through life’s experiences, it creates itself. Despite this realization, I still believed my life lacked significance.
Then, someone I deeply admire offered me this piece of advice:
“You don’t need to find a purpose; you need to find things that make you happy every day. For me, that happiness lies in people, particularly spending time with my team. That’s what gets me out of bed to work every day.”
So here’s my WHY: I see life as a canvas, I experiment with colours and I choose to create colourful and happy moments. It might sound a bit poetic, but well.. that’s only because I liked painting as a kid (not chatGPT doing its magic). It might not be a big purpose, but it’s what keeps me going. And maybe sometimes that’s what purpose is all about — finding happiness in everyday moments, in the small things.