Distilling life purpose

Posted on February 27, 2007
Filed Under Embrace Your Highest Path and Purpose, How To Develop Your Intuition, Spiritual Development |

Quite frequently, I hear the question “What am I supposed to do next?” The short answer, is, of course “whatever you want.” But what if you don’t know what you want? How can you consciously create the life you desire when you have no idea what that might even look like?

I had one such conversation just recently, and within that conversation I came up with a great little process you can do if you’re not sure what path to take.

Our life purpose is to allow our Soul to express itself fully, with all its gifts and talents, into every aspect of our lives. When we get to be who we truly are in our career, our relationships, and in our personal lives, we experience a very high degree of fulfillment.

This very fulfillment can be your guide to finding your life purpose, or your next step. If you are looking for a new career, for instance, write down all the jobs you’ve had within the last five years, or maybe even within the last decade. Now write a paragraph or two about each job and what was most fulfilling about your work. Initially, these fulfilling characteristics may seem specific to that particular job. Perhaps it was the people you worked with, or the high regard you were held in. Perhaps it was the big paycheck, or your flexible schedule.

Now look closer at what you’ve written so far. See if you can distill the underlying quality or energy that offered you such fulfillment. What exactly was it about working with that particular boss that was so satisfying? Was it trust? Partnership? What did that paycheck represent? Was it independence? What did your flexible schedule really offer you?

Ideally, for each job you might come up with one or two words or short phrases that carry the essence of what offered you such fulfillment. You may even find that these words or short phrases apply to several of your past jobs!

So now you have it - a roadmap of what creates fulfillment in your life. What you do - whether it’s accounting, web design, life coaching, party planning or social work - is really not all that important. What is essential is that the elements of your roadmap to fulfillment are represented. When looking at available opportunities - or creating your own - you can hold up this roadmap as a guide.

If you would like to take this process to the next level, you might also want to look at the things you choose to do in your personal time. What fulfilling qualities do your hobbies offer you?

This is not a quick process, but it is worth doing. You may recognize a central theme, an energetic quality that you derive great fulfillment from in most other areas of your life. You may discover that you are least satisfied with the life area in which this energetic quality isn’t represented. This energetic quality is what you are here to express. It is your gift to others, as well as to yourself.

Blessings,

Andrea