“I am here for a purpose and that purpose is to grow into a mountain, not to shrink to a grain of sand. Henceforth will I apply ALL my efforts to become the highest mountain of all and I will strain my potential until it cries for mercy.”—Og Mandino
According to Napoleon Hill, “there is one quality which one must possess to win, and that is definiteness of purpose, the knowledge of what one wants, and a burning desire to possess it.” Perhaps, you are thinking “Crap! I still haven’t found my purpose!” Don’t worry. All is not lost. You are not a failure.
Please, reread the Og Mandino quote above and the Napoleon Hill quote again, and notice what they have in common. Neither of these wise men suggest that finding one’s Purpose is easy. Nor do they suggest that it is something that will become clear rather early in life. (It may become clear while you are quite young, but, if it does, consider it a rare blessing.) Og Mandino suggests that “purpose is to grow into a mountain”. Napoleon Hill implies that purpose is something we should have a “burning desire to possess”. Yes, we should diligently seek to find our Purpose, but let us not neglect the journey.
More important than finding one’s Purpose—at least initially—is learning who one is. This is no short journey. It is not some online questionnaire or personality survey. Moreover, it is not necessarily who someone else believes one to be. We are all who we are. We are not who our parents, friends, teachers, or partner want us to be.
Find who you are and it will lead to finding your Purpose. Explore your interests and talents. Try things. Fail. Purpose will ultimately reveal itself.
Purpose is not a static certainty. Purpose is as much momentary as it is lasting. Purpose is circumstantial. Yes, we may have some Universal Purpose that is our vocation or calling. I am not confident, however, that we have a singular Purpose. Quite possibly, our vocation may evolve over time as we grow.
Having a definitive Purpose—or, rather, definitively knowing our Purpose—is not as important as understanding one’s self and seeking to apply one’s self Spiritually. It is, however, essential to recognize that we are a part of something greater than self and that with this comes an understanding that we have a unique place in the Universe.
It is not uncommon for someone to work hard to achieve something in life, only to be left empty by the success. Athletes, for example, sacrifice and train to win a championship and be the top of their sport, only to find there is no satisfaction in being at the top. It is not that they have been pursuing the wrong goal. They simply have pursued a dream without ever asking the question “why?”.
I wrote recently about finding one’s “why”. I don’t think this can be separated from the pursuit of one’s Purpose. Whatever our hand finds to do, we are to do it with all our might (Ecclesiastes 9:10). We can’t, however, sink heart and soul into something without knowing why. Whatever our hand finds to do, we should do it for ourselves. Again, not for our parents, friends, teachers, partner, or anyone other than our self. Now, to be clear, this is not to imply that we are to be selfish. Quite the contrary. We should be self-motivated to do what we all called to do. Anything else is not Purpose. Rather, it is fulfilling the desires of another. Hopefully, one is surrounding one’s self with supportive and encouraging people who believe in them.
Go. Do what you love and are passionate about doing. Be (extra)ordinary!
Carpe momento!
“The purpose of life is to obey the hidden command which ensures harmony among all and creates an ever better world. We are not created only to enjoy the world, we are created in order to evolve the cosmos.”—Maria Montessori