What is your purpose in life?
Do you know what does it mean to live a life with purpose? Many people go through life not really understanding what their purpose is or how to find it. We continue to hear about people finding their purpose in life and we still do not know what our purpose is. How is that possible? Having a purpose might be different from what you think and that is probably a reason why you believe that you haven't found it yet.
Before we talk about finding our purpose, do you know why is it important to have a purpose? Studies made at Harvard University suggest that having a purpose helps you live a longer and healthier life. When people have a higher sense of purpose, they can reduce the risk of disability, heart disease, sleep issues, and other health problems.
According to an article published by Edward-Elmhurst Health in 2019, only 25% of American adults report having a clear sense of purpose. After 2021, the percentage of American adults finding their purpose increased to 59%, which tells us that more people are in the look for meaning and purpose in their lives.
So, how do we find our purpose? You probably believe that having a purpose means doing something big, like becoming an activist for human rights, selling a few bestsellers, or maybe running marathons for charities. If you think about it, what do you think all of these people have in common? What they may have in common is that they do what they love and love what they do.
Trust that you can find your purpose in life. It doesn't matter if you do something big or small as long as you do what you love and what you are good at. It is that simple.
How come you may ask? Well, think about what you are good at that you also love doing because it comes easy to you. Whatever it is, it should bring you joy. To give you some examples. There are people who are good at listening and love having conversations with people to listen to their stories. Listening is where they can find their purpose. Their purpose is to be good listeners. Listening makes them happy and they are good at it.
Not every person in this world has to do something big to have a meaningful life. You can be good at talking to the elderly, giving out smiles, cooking, searching for fossils, making good coffee, making people laugh, connecting people, etc.
There are so many things you can consider to be your purpose, the problem is nobody has told us that we can find a purpose on the simplest things. Now, something essential when having a sense of purpose is the feel of connection to others. For example, if you make good coffee, when your friends and family drink it, love it and enjoy it, that makes you feel connected to them and you feel happy. Using what you are good at to serve others is what creates the connection that helps your life have more meaning and purpose.
You might be good at doing many different things that bring joy to your life. Does that mean you can have different purposes? Absolutely! Nobody says you should only have one purpose. Keep in mind that your purpose can also change throughout your life.
Now, can you answer the initial question? What is your purpose in life?