Discovering your Purpose and Passion

Increasing clarity of my life purpose and passion enable me to make powerful choices in my life.  I didn’t always have the clarity I have today and each day I gain more clarity. As I look back on my life, I understand how everything I experienced in my life -the exciting, tough, and the painful - became the foundation for what I’m creating today. Each day I set intentions for that how I want to show up in my relationships, space, body or activity Intentionally, I make choices to consciously align my values, purpose and passion. I don't always get it right but I keep making new choices as I lean into a life filled with love, joy and meaning.

We are each beautifully made. There is no other you or me on the planet with our unique talents, DNA, family background, experiences, strengths, skills, or passion. Purpose describes how we use our unique qualities to contribute to the world in a way that gives our life meaning.  It aligns our heart and head and evolves over time. Passion is the high emotional state we experience while living our purpose. When we’re living our life on purpose with passion life flows easily and feels fulfilling.

It takes self-awareness, time, and courage to discover our purpose and passion, but we can discover it at any age. In the absence of this understanding, we may spend a lifetime living up to the expectations of others and lose some of our way. Yet, the seeds of our purpose and passion are planted in our lives and revealed if we pay attention. We must quiet both the voices in our heads and the opinions of others long enough and often enough to discover the answer. Following are some practices I use to gain clarity about myself:

1. Observe my younger self as a child. What did I enjoy doing and what were my natural talents? What did other people ask me to do? What did family or friends appreciate about me? How did my birth order contribute to the skills I gained?

2. Capture your origin stories. What are the special stories from my life? What was I doing or being? Why is it a special memory? What talent did I express? What challenge did I overcome? What did I learn? How was I stronger or more confident afterwards? What makes me proud as I look back? How did it contribute to who I am today?

3. Life themes.  I reflect on the journey of my life – both positive or challenging experiences. What are the common themes that describe how I grew, became wiser, stronger, more autonomous, and more capable of creating the life I want.

4. Powerful mirrors. What talents, strengths and capabilities did other people see in me before I recognized them as something unique? How did those gifts help my family, team, organization, or community? How did their belief in and appreciation of my talent help me believe in myself?

5. Gratitude lists. I keep daily gratitude lists because over time I better understand who and what I care about in life.

6. “Wins” lists. I keep daily success lists because over time it helps me discover more talents, strengths, and competencies.  

7. End in mind. At the end of my life how do I want to be remembered? How do I want to make the world a better place? How will be evident about my life purpose?

I believe life equips us with everything we need to live into our purpose and passion.  Creating quiet moments for reflection and observation each day allows us to discover ourselves at a deeper level. It’s an inward journey only we can do. It may be one of the most important journeys we travel as it leads to better understanding of our unique, beautiful selves. When we take action to live intentionally and fulfill the calling of our heart, we can live our most authentic lives. When we see and honor this beauty in others and support their purpose,  we can transform the world together.