#8 Finding Your Purpose

So you have devoted yourself to becoming the kind of person that has purpose in them. You have learned how to never quit, but you still have this aching feeling that there ought to be a special thing that you are supposed to do with your life. Honestly, I can’t blame you for feeling that way. I have thought that about my own life too. A friend of mine once told me “the best part of being an adult is that you can be anything. The anxiety is that you can’t be everything.” It’s true-we have to pick one thing to really work hard at. Maybe, if we want to go nuts, we can pick two, but that’s pushing it. So how do we choose? How do we know what that right thing is?

Let me tell you a bit about my own journey with purpose and see if this feels right for any of you. I ran the whole education gauntlet like mom and pop told me to. I went to school, got good grades, then went off to college and did it again. I declared a major, was bored to tears with it, picked another one that I loved, and almost finished both before I finally figured out what I wanted to do. I wanted nothing more than to leave the whole pampered lifestyle and to go work on my feet all day instead. And the rest was history. 

For a while.

Then I got my reminder again, when I found myself working in an office building. I took the job to work with my buddies, and maybe start a career in IT. But I started gravitating back towards physical demands. I started hitting the gym, taking cold showers, and putting my body through as many trials and turbulences as I could. I still craved another wrestling match with mother nature. It was just in my blood, I guess. 

I think we all could have experiences kind of like that- types of things that we find ourselves naturally coming back to time and time again. Maybe we can survive without it being our career path, but they will always be pulling on us in one way or another. But not every passion that tugs on you will make a great commitment. For example, I also love music. It will always be a part of me. But I also love having a normal life, living in the same place and having the same routine. That’s why I will never be a rockstar. The lifestyle just isn’t in me. 

No man lives a completely passionless life. We all have things that interest us, even if it’s for silly reasons like consistency and predictability. Heck, I love tradework because it’s safe and secure. I think that’s the other thing that will start to crop up as you live your life: you will find something that you can’t live without. Maybe it’s a problem in the world that nags at you to be solved. Maybe it’s something you just love doing (or, perhaps it paves a way for something you love doing. That’s an option too.) Or maybe it’s your only chance at getting anywhere in this world. That’s ok too. 

I have found that life takes everything that we don’t put in the effort to keep. Our jobs can fire us, our work schedules can shift and who’s available to hang out with can change too. If we don’t put in some work to keep what we love, then it will eventually slip through our fingers. And one day, you will find yourself snapping back when life tries to take something from you. You will find that one thing that you simply can’t live without. I know you’ll find it, just give it time. 

So get out there and go adventuring! Commit to different things that look interesting and see what comes of it! Eventually, you will find your purpose, and it will shine like the sun! I pray that adventure finds you and that you can use your time well to learn about the world and its many joys. And I pray that your adventures guide you into the arms of purpose. 

Until Next Time

May Peace be your Guide.