My Pursuit Of Purpose

801 Words2 Pages

Many people go through much of their lives without really thinking about their purpose. I don't mean a lofty, philosophic, and often unrealistic purpose that has us striving to save the world or solve the challenge of poverty throughout the world (although these are both admirable for those whose true purpose is to do so). What I am talking about is the individual and unique purpose that drives and grounds us. The one thing that gives meaning to our lives and motivates us to achieve our potential.

Purpose is best expressed in two parts. The first part is fixed. This is the intrinsic nature or core of who we are. It describes the "what" of our purpose and does not change over time or across situations. The second part is variable. It is "how" we express our purpose and can change over time or across situations. The "how" represents the actions that we take in the fulfillment of our purpose. When our actions are synchronized with our purpose, we will not only perform our best but we will also feel our best. For example, in my previous management roles, I always found myself feeling the most satisfied and energized both during and after helping one of my team members solve a particularly challenging situation. As I was to discover, this reflected the fact that this …show more content…

When we use our capabilities in activities that serve our purpose, we achieve a state in which our skills and our commitment are highly synchronized. In this state we are achieving what Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi refers to as flow in his books "Flow" and "Finding Flow: The Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life" (I highly recommend these books). When we are in flow, we are at the highest level of engagement in what we do and are the most contented. For many of us, this state is achieved without awareness. All we know is that we are thoroughly and completely enjoying what we

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