When you say the phrase ‘Life Purpose’ my brain immediately begins an internal video footage of someone climbing a mountain and meditating in a tibetan monastery for years on end. Nothing could be further from the truth of my actual life purpose.
What I mean is that when someone says Life Purpose the word itself conjures up this idea of Hollywood-esque epic changes, saving the world etc etc. Yet in reality very few of us are going to make that kind of world changing impact. (It’s not impossible however it wouldn’t have the same impact if we were all doing it).
So I have redefined the phrase Life Purpose as my quest for the key to happiness.
Because for me I truly believe we were all put on the planet for a reason. We all have a mission in the scheme of things. A quest to fulfill. And as far as I am concerned the most important thing in life is to be happy.
So finding your life’s purpose is to fulfill a quest or indeed quests.
However that can still seem a little overwhelming. But fear not my brave knight allow me to take on the role of the old wise woman on the road (who in true fantasy style will turn out to be the fairy godmother or some such stereotype) and let me guide you to figuring out which quest it is you are trying to fulfill.
Seriously though, as a transformational life coach I work alot with guiding people to find their life’s purpose and the direction they want to take their life in. In fact I do it so often we usually figure it out in about 90 mins.
So I am going to share my 3 step process with you to help you find your life purpose right now!
Step 1: Answer 7 strange questions
Anyone who likes fantasy films knows that the wise old woman likes to ask the hero or heroine soul searching questions and it is no different here. I can’t take credit for these questions. They were created by Mark Manson and they are solid gold. However I interpret them a little differently to Mark’s way. If you would like to try his original questions check them out here.
Or you can try it my way explained below:
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE FLAVOR OF SHIT SANDWICH AND DOES IT COME WITH AN OLIVE?
Think about the worst possible life style you could have in 10 years from now that you could tolerate and find some happiness in. So not the worst lifestyle you have but what is your bottom line? Where do you live? What do you do in your free time? What do you do in your job? Remember this is not your worst life. It is the lowest standard you could be happy in. I have some clients whose shit sandwich includes being a team leader or owning their own house. Those are their non negotiables. What are yours?
WHAT IS TRUE ABOUT YOU TODAY THAT WOULD MAKE YOUR 8-YEAR-OLD SELF CRY?
When we were younger we did things for the sure joy of it. I used to love to make up stories and drew constantly, I did ballet religiously. If you had told me at 8 that when I became an adult I would never dance again I would have broken down and not seen the point to life. What did you do that you loved that you don’t do anymore?
WHAT MAKES YOU FORGET TO EAT AND POOP?
Maybe for you, it’s computer games. Maybe it’s organizing things efficiently, or getting lost in a fantasy world, creativity, sport or teaching somebody something, or solving technical problems. Whatever it is, don’t just look at the activities that keep you up all night, but look at the cognitive principles behind those activities that enthrall you. Because they can easily be applied elsewhere.
HOW CAN YOU BETTER EMBARRASS YOURSELF?
As Mark says’ Before you are able to be good at something and do something important, you must first suck at something and have no clue what you’re doing’. Logically infallible right. And when we suck at stuff we get embarrassed. And as an adult we hate it and try and avoid it as much as possible. A habit that forms in puberty. However, on your quest to happiness you are going to have to bite the bullet and suck at something in order to do something you really care about. (There is a teaching in this and if you aren’t sure to see it check out my You Tube Video What is the Universe trying to tell you? )
HOW ARE YOU GOING TO SAVE THE WORLD?
We all want to save the world in some way shape or form. Find a cause you really care about. Or make one up. Obviously you probably won’t save the world alone. However this gives you a chance to see what you really care about in life. We all like making a difference. And if you are doing that for something you care about you are going to feel happier.
GUN TO YOUR HEAD, IF YOU HAD TO LEAVE THE HOUSE ALL DAY, EVERY DAY, WHERE WOULD YOU GO AND WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
We are often so busy everyday we forget to do the things we are passionate about. What if someone put a gun to your head and told you that you had to leave the house all day, everyday until you went to bed? What if you have no internet access? No Phone? What would you do? Where would you go?? How would you use that time?
IF YOU KNEW YOU WERE GOING TO DIE ONE YEAR FROM TODAY, WHAT WOULD YOU DO AND HOW WOULD YOU WANT TO BE REMEMBERED?
Thinking about our own death surprisingly has a lot of advantages. It gives us perspective and forces us to focus on what’s actually important in our lives and what’s just frivolous and distracting. What would you do if you knew exactly when the end was coming? What will your legacy be? How do you want people to remember you?
Write all your answers down. It will help you step back and be objective
Step 2: Look for your passions
Go through your answers to the 7 questions. What words have you used again and again? Those words are your themes, your passions. Basically the things that matter the most to you in life. If you mention something like helping people, family, travel, swimming. Whatever it is, make a list. These passions are the core and center of you. If you don’t have these things in your life you won’t be happy. They are also your gifts to the world. They are what you can contribute. And they are exactly what you should be focusing on in your life’s quest.
Step 3: Envision your ideal life
It’s time to have some fun and do a big throw out all reality and allow your fantasy to run riot brainstorm. This is you creating your universal recipe for how you would like your life to be. Every time you think no that’s not possible, ask yourself do you want it? If the answer is yes, then it goes on the brain storm.
There are 3 sections to this brainstorm Lifestyle, Career and Bucket list. And fill each section out in that order. I would recommend imagining that this is where you are in life 10 – 15 years from now. Here are a few questions to guide you along the way
Lifestyle – This includes where you live, what in, do you own it, countryside, city, what style of accomodation, what decorations. What is your life style like? Your hobbies? Do you eat out every week? Do you travel 3 times a year? Do you own a summer house? Do you have a pet? Do you have a car, a motor bike, a boat? And how much money do you have in the bank? Also do you want a lot of social activity or is me time that is very important to you?
Career – Describe your job, the hours you work, your responsibilities, your working environment, your ideal colleagues, describe your working day and of course your ideal pay.
Bucket List– This is basically a bucket list for the next ten years. And this does not need to be just finished university, got married with two kids, it can be something like being an extra on a marvel movie, volunteering in Nepal, riding a bike across the great wall of China or doing a parachute jump.
Now check that you have included the themes from the 7 questions in your ideal life.
Now after this 3 step process you should have a clear idea of:
- What makes you happy in life
- What the baseline standard is for you to be happy in life
- Where you would really like to be in life.
And of course it is that ideal life that is your quest.
The next step is making that happen…
And that is exactly what I will be showing you how to do in the next 2 weeks. So stay tuned here, on Facebook and YouTube because this February it’s all about life transformation at Re:Root and I want to give you as many tools as I can to help you do exactly that. Now I want to hear from you….
What is your Quest? Let me know in the comments below.
And don’t forget to like and share this post so you can inspire someone else to find their life purpose and begin their quest for happiness
From me to you I wish you the most inspiring week
<3 Emma-Jane
These are really good tips… #3 is something I’m really trying to work on right now through daily visualisation so hoping it makes a difference!
Visualistion is such a powerful tool!