A Simple Guide to Finding Your Life Purpose

Finding your life purpose may require doing some challenging inner work, but it’s essential to live life to the fullest.

Key takeaways:

• A life purpose is a guiding light that a person follows throughout their life’s journey
• Fulfilling a purpose in life will help you feel valuable and worthy
• Identifying your life purpose requires introspection
• A life purpose is different from your missions in life
• Determining what drives you and ignites your passions can help establish your life purpose

Knowing and working toward a purpose in life can give you a great deal of gratification. We as humans feel good when we align our actions and thoughts with our purposes for living. Even the people around you benefit when you have purpose.

Finding your life’s purpose is notoriously tricky, though, (for everyone), despite its importance to your well-being. There are various causes to fight for and people to inspire, yet so many people struggle to find out why they’re on the planet. To add to that complexity is the fact that the missions that guide you on your life’s purpose might — and probably will — be altered depending on where you are in your live.

Often, the world’s problems seem too big to tackle or too exhausting to approach with an already hectic daily schedule. The hard truth, however, is that not pursuing your life’s purpose leaves you with a meaningless, unfulfilled existence.

This article discusses the definition of a life purpose, why it’s so crucial to growth, and some effective methods for finding yours.

Life purpose and you

Greek philosopher Epictetus said, “For you came into existence not when you chose, but when the world had need of you,” meaning that there is a purpose in life for everyone, and we are all here to fulfill them.

It’s easy to try and define life purpose as a career. : To teach others or to be of service, but when careers end, it can lead to a harsh awakening. A life purpose goes far deeper than a person’s job. It is a deep-seated drive to act in a way that feeds your soul.

People often confuse purpose and mission. While you have one overarching, abiding purpose in life, you’ll find many missions along the way to advance your journey. That’s where careers, volunteer work, and other activities come into play. They all work together to help you do the work you’re meant to accomplish.

Finding what ignites your passion requires contemplating Epictetus’ theory and diving deeper than our everyday activities to find true meaning in life.

How to find your purpose in life

The secret to uncovering your life’s purpose lies in your past experiences. Tap into the experiences that meant the most to you and how they relate to what’s currently important in your life.

Try out some of these exercises to find the genuine reason the world needs you.

Define your core values

For many of us, this can be as difficult as finding our purpose. Simplify it by asking yourself what is most important to you in life. Take your answer(s) and see if a theme emerges from them. Assess your role in the important things, and that may guide you to your purpose.

Imagine the “perfect” you

Decide what type of person you want to be. Imagine what that person would do in your everyday circumstances and routines. Once you know that person well, incorporate their actions into your repertoire, and your purpose will become much more apparent.

Find the injustices you can’t endure

A life’s purpose often lies in fighting injustice for others. Witnessing injustice, pain, degradation, and intolerance of others can move you so deeply that you feel strongly driven to work toward correcting it.

Seek out your passions

Exploring the experiences and locations that energize you can be a telling clue to your life’s purpose. Being exhilarated by the ocean, libraries, or train stations can all be a glimpse into what makes you unique and your particular work ahead.

Determine what you’re willing to sacrifice

Humans typically sacrifice things that are important to them, such as leisure time or money, to attain the things that give them purpose. Ask yourself what objects, events, or plans you are willing to sacrifice, and your life’s purpose may become more evident.

Exhibit a growth mindset

Consistently growing and bettering yourself makes it easier to identify your purpose and commit to working toward it every day. Employing a growth mindset helps us accept challenges as opportunities, receive constructive feedback, and persevere in the face of failure.

Give back

What you value becomes apparent when you start giving back to the universe for the things you feel grateful for. You instinctively gravitate to where you feel needed and gain the most meaning from your actions. Giving back to others — or “prosociality”, in psychology terminology — can heighten your sense of meaning and purpose.

Spend time with inspirational people

A standard psychological ideal is that your personality is the average of the five people you’re around most. Spending much of your time with positive, purpose-driven people is more likely to inspire you to have the same mindset and may even trigger the discovery of your purpose through those interactions.

Look beyond your family and coworkers and speculate upon whom you should give your time. Assess those connections and ensure you’re surrounding yourself with aspirational, positive people.

Any of these methods can help you see your life purpose more precisely. You might discover a new way to awaken your mind to the possibilities of your life. The destination will come. The journey is up to you.

Clarity of purpose is behind every successful person. While you can choose to cruise through life on autopilot, you’ll never reach the pinnacle of happiness the universe offers if you don’t live life on purpose.

Finding your life’s purpose doesn’t have to be complicated

If you feel that you’re floundering in life or that every day is aimless, it could be time to reevaluate your life’s purpose. Determining and understanding your purpose in life will have a considerable positive impact on you, and now is always the perfect time to start!

I am a huge proponent of personal transformation and how it can change the direction of your life, from home life to romance and work. Check out my Medium, LinkedIn pages to see what personal transformation looks like firsthand and what it can do for you!