Looking for your life’s purpose? Don’t do this one thing too soon.
People say to me, “I’m ready for what’s next in my life. Something more meaningful than what I’ve been doing. I just don’t know what that is yet…”
And then they usually describe their hobbies and draw a straight line into the future and then label it. Like they love entertaining so maybe that means they should be an event planner. Or maybe they are interested in politics so they think that means they need to run for an elected position. That is a wonderful way to set goals. But when we start the search for our life’s purpose, labels and straight lines can be restrictive.
As a life coach, my training taught me that labeling what you do comes last in the unfolding of your life’s purpose. The steps are to first notice, then narrow, and then finally name.
Notice what you enjoy, what piques your curiosity, what ideas you can’t let go of.
Narrow by following the patterns and themes or combining interests and focusing.
And then finally, give a name to what you do that gives you fulfillment and meaning.
For my peer group who run around busy all the time, I have a slight variation: Nothing, Notice, Narrow, Name.
First, do nothing. I don’t mean quit your job. I mean take a break. For me that is going for a walk without my phone. Travel to a far flung destination if you can. Go for long car drives in the country. Swim in Lake Michigan. Just push the pause button and stop feeding your mind content. Doing this will be helpful in developing the awareness you need to pay attention to your life’s purpose. It “speaks” to you in a variety of ways. Sometimes it’s a pull to something new, sometimes it’s a return to a childhood interest, sometimes it’s a topic or theme that keeps appearing, and sometimes someone in your life brings you exactly what you need in that moment when you get still.
Then notice what you are interested in. These days I’m interested in vinyl records. I notice them everywhere. I am not extrapolating that to anything right now. I’m just noticing and enjoying planning a visit to a vinyl record listening room. Whatever it “means”, if anything, will become clear later.
Narrowing comes next. I once held a job in sales at a startup and was reading books on spirituality and self-help in any spare time I could find. It became very obvious to me that the world of life coaching was infinitely more captivating to me than my day job at a startup. So I quit. Now, most people don’t need to narrow that drastically and suddenly. But I did what I thought was best for me at the time.
And finally, I have named what I do. I’m a life coach that helps people find their life purpose. That certainly isn’t final. As life unfolds I will continue to tweak by doing nothing, noticing, narrowing and finally at the very end, naming my ever-evolving purpose.
Hello, I’m Serena. I am a life coach and I write about discovering your calling and creating your right life. If you would like to receive thought-provoking content, join my email list. If you are interested in personalized 1:1 coaching, get in touch with me here.
