What is Your Purpose? Quotes and Questions to Help You Find It.

"Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself and know that everything in life has a purpose." Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

"Decide upon your major definite purpose in life and then organize all your activities around it." Brian Tracy

"It's time to start living the life you've imagined." Henry James

Thinking it Through

I was reading the book, "The Blue Zones" which shares the results of research studies done in areas(Blue Zones) where more people live to be over a 100 then anywhere else on the earth. The researchers were looking for commonality's among the octogenarians to discover the secret to their long and healthy lives. One of the clues they found was that all of the octogenarians had Ikigai (icky guy) or purpose, a reason for living. (Really, it is lots more fun and exotic to say Ikigai then purpose!) In Okinawa, one of the Blue Zones, they talk about it all the time. In fact if you stop one of the Okinawan octogenarians on the street and asked what their Ikigai was they could tell you without a pause. If I asked you, could you tell me your purpose? Do you know why you get up or is your day just made up of an endless to-do list that feels meaningless? If you are without an Ikigiai then it is well worth your time to find a quiet place and think about it. Don't worry we all have one! Consider what is meaningful to you and what you really care about... Here are some examples of purpose statements.

"To leave the world a better place than I found it, for horses and for people."

"To uplift humanity's consciousness through business."

"To inspire and Coach people to live life with passion."

"To bring beauty into people's lives through their homes and yards."

As you read these statements it is obvious that there are many different ways these people could live their Ikigai and that's the beauty of a purpose statement. It needs to be big enough that it will still get you out of bed when you are a hundred and ten! The other wonderful thing about purpose is that you will never get bored because you can do many different things to live your purpose. For example; Let's look at the purpose statement "To bring beauty into people's lives through their homes and yards." This person could be doing a million different things. They might build water features, open a boutique with beautiful things for the home and yard, have an online business, be an organizer... and the list goes on. When I work with clients to find their Ikigai they are often surprised to discover they are already involved in at least a few activities that relate to their purpose. The problem is they have not acknowledged their accomplishments and are not focused on their purpose. Knowing your Ikigai and focusing on it daily makes all the difference!

Challenge:

1. What is your Ikigai? What is it that gets you out of bed in the morning?
2. What are your top 3 unique strengths?
3. How can you use those strengths to live your purpose?
4. What is something you can do today to live your purpose?