You can spend an entire lifetime advancing human relationships, developing expertise, building opinions, and exploring the world. In our modern world today employment all over the globe is increasingly becoming more niched and employees are now required to have ultra-specialized knowledge. You might even spend thirty to forty years becoming a world-recognized expert in your field or a thought leader. And then, despite all these accomplishments, you are going to die someday.
Unfortunately, your life’s experience and the knowledge you acquire cannot be passed along genetically. So, what do you do when you consider the reality that someday you are going to die? How are you going to pass along all the experience acquired, perspectives gained, and expertise built?
I would say, instead of struggling to chase “success” at all cost to no end, focus on finding ways to preserve your experience, knowledge, and thoughts, so that even when you die your ideas and work can continue indefinitely.
Everything in your life will become clearer once you define your end goal.
Myles Munroe said, “The greatest tragedy in life is not death, but life without a reason.”
Your purpose in life will lead you to do the things that make you forget time, smile, and laugh. So, do all you can to search for clarity. I once heard Bishop T.D. Jakes tell a story of how he almost gave up on preaching one time. But in the process of almost giving up, he was able to find meaning in his struggle, and that is what gave him the strength to push forward through the unimaginable depression.
Once you have defined your end goal and your specific wants, its easier to deal with the doubts. Feel free to rethink or change your goal if you believe it is not leading you in your desired direction. However, the most important decision is to define your direction.
Winston Churchill once said, “It’s not enough to have lived. We should be determined to live for something.”
You are braver, brighter, and tougher than you think. To make genuine changes in your life, strive to attain the “difficult” goals that will get you where you want to go. Decide where you want to be and look forward to it.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
In his book, “Unapologetically You: Reflections on Life and the Human Experience”, Dr. Steve Maraboli writes: “I want to live my life in such a way that when I get out of bed in the morning, the devil says, “aw shit, he’s up!”
Clarity of purpose challenges you to live a victorious life and commit to actions that get you closer to why God created you in the first place.
So, understand and define what success means to you personally. Although this is a process of trial and error, try it out anyway. Constantly evaluate the results of your definition.
The key is to continually clarify what you want to be, do, and have, and to do more of those things that bring out the best in you.
Transformation of your life should not take you years to achieve. Your life is a masterpiece, and you can create a new life for yourself. Your mission should be to make your life the greatest possible expression of who you are, and to expand and truly live out the vision you have for yourself. To transform your life, you must find and remove the things that distract you from the changes you want to make.
Most adult lives are still not completely clear. Self-discovery is an essential journey to embark on when you want to gain clarity about your own life’s purpose. You must be ready with an open mind to embrace the surprises that come along the way. To move your life onto an entirely new, more challenging, and indeed more rewarding path, you must first know your “why”. This will give you the courage to take the risks needed to stay motivated and get ahead when the chips are down.
Lastly, If you really want to start or create a life that is aligned with your purpose, do not give in to the relentless pressure to get a job that will take you away from the pursuit of your purpose, rather, strive to get a job that will offer you a chance to do what truly interests you in a way that will take you closer to your dreams.
Your journey of transformation begins now. Good luck!
