One of the primary themes of personal growth work is finding your purpose, and with good reason. Those of us who are growth-oriented have a desire to live a meaningful life, to spend our days in a way that brings joy not only to us, but to others in some way.
We don't just want to go through the motions; we don't just want to exist. We get a sense there is a reason we are here, and we must devote ourselves to finding that reason. Our soul came here to get something done, and we must find out what that "something" is.
Oy vey... talk about pressure, right? That it is our job to figure this out, that we feel we must make the perfect combination of decisions that will lead us to the "promised land" can feel a bit overwhelming and a lot discouraging. We believe that every second we are not "on the path" is wasted time.
We may have certain interests and passions, but are those things "it"? Or is there something else we are missing? Did we maybe get off track at sometime in the past, and if so, are we totally screwed now?
As someone who used to worry about this a lot, and developed some insights and perspectives, that helped me a lot, I wanted to share my thoughts on this, and maybe it will resonate with some of you.
You Are on Purpose the Second You Get Here
I believe that at the core, we all have the same purpose... to experience life from our completely unique perspective, and add to the expansion of the Universe, or All That Is... if you will. And how we go about doing that is totally up to us. We are here to experience joy and all that other warm, fuzzy stuff, and whatever helps us accomplish that is all good.
While it is possible our higher self came here with some general themes in mind, I don't believe we are locked into any one type of life or destiny. We have this thing called free will, and I think we were meant to exercise it.
It is not about "finding," it is about "choosing." That seems much more manageable right?
You likely have certain interests and passions, and they can serve as great clues as to what would make a fulfilling, enjoyable life for you. What are they? And in cultivating this list, don't make any judgments about these things, such as them being too frivolous or not "spiritual" enough, or not "bold" enough.
You get to want whatever you want, and be whomever you want to be.
And if you don't know right now, don't worry about it. Those things will reveal themselves when you make some room for them to come to you, and relaxing about it will certainly speed things up.
Your purpose is to be happy, and there are infinite ways to accomplish that worthy goal, and your job is to get to know yourself well enough to know what would truly make you happy and from there...
Just Follow the Feelings
Again, be willing to relax a bit on the idea there is one thing you are meant to be doing with your life, for the rest of your days. If you consider the idea of finding your joy, and just experiencing life from your perspective, your purpose, you can always be hot on the trail of awesomeness with a willingness to follow your feelings, and just focus on that next step.
Maybe you feel drawn towards taking a certain class, trying a certain job or taking up a certain hobby... go for it. Maybe you'll stick with this thing, or maybe you won't, and something else will open up for you. No matter what, it's always all good.
When we get more comfortable following our feelings, without always analyzing everything to death, or acting as if every decision is permanent, we will always be moving towards what we want, and where we want to be, even if we aren't sure what that is, or where we want to go.
From the time I started pondering how I wanted to spend my life to up until the current moment, where I have managed to manifest a buttload of awesome stuff that I never thought was possible, all that happened in between came together in ways I couldn't have mapped out with my mind.
It all came together with a series of choices that all built on one another, that all brought me closer to my ultimate desires, such as traveling the world long-term and pursuing my passion for personal growth in a professional capacity.
I feel very fulfilled in writing my blog, doing my podcasts and coaching my clients. I love traveling and don't see myself settling down in any one place anytime soon.
Will I do this forever? No clue. I have a feeling that assisting others in their growth will always be something in which I want to be involved, but at some point in the future, I may feel drawn to do something completely differently.
How Can You Start Enjoying Your Life Now?
Sure, maybe you're not in the most fulfilling job right now. Maybe you are feeling a bit lost and adrift, wishing you had a stronger sense of self and the direction in which you want to head.
Maybe you have a sense you are destined for bigger things, but you just can't see how you could ever get from where you are now to this "better" place that surely exists for you.
I know... it's icky and we don't like feeling uncomfortable. We want to figure everything out, we want to figure it out now, and we want to make it all go away so we can feel happy.
But, realize that nothing has to change right in this immediate moment for you to start feeling better about your life. The wonderful thing is, the shift in your energy and perspective, and the willingness to allow some joy into your life now, is the very thing that will break it all open.
In this higher-vibing space, you will start seeing possibilities you might not have before. You will become a magnet for all sorts of ideas, inspirations, encounters, opportunities and inspired actions that will get you moving in a different direction.
And before you know it, you will find yourself living a purposeful life that is perfect for you. You get to decide how it's going to go... it's all about choice not solving some puzzle, or becoming privvy to some plan that was put together without your knowledge.
Kelli Cooper is a coach and blogger with a focus on the oft-misunderstood law of attraction. Check out her blog Life Made to Order to learn more about here, as well as posts, podcasts, products and information about her coaching services.