The number one question I am asked by my life coaching clients with real life issues is “What’s figuring out my purpose got to do with solving my immediate life challenge?” Why bother investing time and money in something so esoteric when you have bills to pay, a family to raise or milestones to achieve at work? Fair question.

There is one caveat. Their assumptions around purpose are misleading.

For many, purpose is associated with:

• A job / action to be taken – a goal
• Something they’ve read about other people e.g. She’s off saving the almost extinct species of marine life in a remote part of the world (interpreted as she must have purpose, which she might very well have, but that’s not the only way purpose is intended to be expressed)
• A contribution to something deemed big or historic e.g. She saved the community from the demolition of the public park. (interpreted as we all have to start taking on major crusades and causes to have purpose)

What if I told you that articulating your purpose starts with very practical applications such as paying your bills, meeting your KRAs, strengthening key relationships and even saving time? For this, let’s quickly unpack a really helpful perspective on purpose.

In my book Reboot Your Life, Your Way, I refer to purpose as the hope, rather than the fear that fuels you in the long run.

Look, life is dynamic. It’s likely that what you want to accomplish today will look completely different 6 months from now. So that decision to quit your job to go save the whales (as noble as it is) or embark on a new upskilling course or even your volunteering assignment can actually derail rather than propel you towards the life fulfillment you so desperately seek if it is not preceded it by the right line of enquiry.

Simply put, purpose is the thread that binds our fulfillment throughout our lives and it’s our north star. It’s components are not only what have to be present in the face of all major life decisions but also in the face of our daily choices. In other words, I like to see my purpose as one of those self playing keyboards whose keys light up to play a note and create the melody to a wonderful song when pre programmed with the data. Except here, those keys are our values.

Finding Your North Star 101

I often ask my clients to simulate standing on a stage where they’re being celebrated for something major they’re dreaming of accomplishing. I ask them to imagine that they’ve achieved all the things on their wish list with me. I challenge them to look at themselves as if in the third person and ask the following:

• If you could look at this person for the rockstar they are, what part of them do you believe needed to be activated to bring out the version of them that’s being celebrated?
• What did they stand for to manifest this aspect of themselves?
• When they were being this accomplished version, what was the impact they saw themselves having on their immediate world around them?

The point I’m driving home is that our purpose is already living within us like an energetic river. This exercise simply taps into that energy.

Connect with purpose while waiting at the bus stop

While the above exercise helps you clarify your larger vision, here’s the abridged version you can use in your daily life for ANY task, decision, choice:

• What’s important to me about this task, decision, choice?
• What’s the values I am standing for when I take on this task, decision, choice?
• If I changed my language from “I need to do this task” to “I want to do this task”, how might your energy feel different?

When I’ve used this line of enquiry with both the bigger goals it has paid me huge dividends e.g. Shall I get into a relationship with this person? Shall I put down money on this course? Shall I quit my job? I can also show you huge amounts of wasted money, time and resources I’ve lost when I didn’t utilize this enquiry. This is fairly easy because you are likely to spend some time, hopefully, before considering life altering changes.

The real magic is that when you can create a discipline of asking the abridged questions during the course of your day. You will:

• Save time – priorities become clear. No, you don’t need answer that call right now.
• Save money – Is this really important? No, you don’t need to buy clothes just because it’s on sale
• Save energy – Am I doing this because I’m driven by fear (word indicators -need, must, should) or hope (word indicators – want).

So, the long answer is that purpose, if examined in the right way, can pay your bills and can be the most practical routine your adopt in your life towards your fulfillment. It’s in these daily choices that bigger, legacy creating decisions get made. Changing the world stems from daily routine, and not from impulse.

Excited about mining for your real values and purpose for really practice life goals? Contact me for a chemistry chat. Imagine a world where everyone stepped into their purpose as easily as they brushed their teeth?