Why do you get up each day? What is the motivational force that drives you through each day? The answers to these questions will help you understand your life’s purpose, so in turn you can become more self-aware and live a purposeful life. Understanding your why can improve your confidence, boost self-efficacy, help you manage stress and serve as a source of empowerment to take on all of life’s opportunities.
How to find your purpose
Self-reflection is a large part of determining your purpose in life. Try these tips to help you reflect on your life and see if you can gain clarity into your why.
- Reflect on what is inside you. This includes your thoughts, feelings, internal strengths and weaknesses.
- Understand your values and beliefs. Your values and beliefs are part of what makes you you! Understanding them is a great way to determine why you behave in certain ways.
- Analyze your behaviors past, present and future. Your why should drive your behaviors; examine yours to determine if what you do matches up with your why.
- Consider your hobbies. What do you do in your free time that you really enjoy doing?
- See the big picture. Put all of the above items together and think about them as a whole. Do you see any patterns or habits that can help you identify your purpose?
Keep in mind…
- You may have more than one purpose. Many people are hung up on the notion that we can only have one purpose, one goal, one aspiration in life, yet maintain multiple roles, various goals, hobbies and passions. Do what makes your heart happy, pursue your passions and participate in things that help you thrive!
- Your why should evolve and grow. Our experiences can cause us to become more strongly rooted in our why and learn better ways of following through and living our why.
- Your why can change. This can happen due to life experiences, witnessing the triumphs and disappointments of others, or you may simply have a change of heart.
For Health Advocate members
If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the wellness coaching component of our Wellness Program, connect with a Wellness Coach today for more great tips on how to improve your well-being!
