We are all on this spinning green ball for a reason, or are we?

In my continued quest to help you Be Outstanding, I thought we'd talk about Life Purpose this week. Although some people never actively seek out their Life Purpose, and therefore it remains dormant throughout their lives, I firmly believe that all of us are born with a Life Purpose. It is the basic reason that we are on this planet, it is the thing we are meant to bring to the world, it is that thing that we alone are meant to do. It is not our job, or even a vocation – it is a round-the-clock, 24-7-365 representation of who you are when you are functioning at your full potential.

When we are functioning according to our Life Purpose we are fulfilled, we feel like we are contributing and making a difference in a whole range of areas. When we are not, the opposite applies and we feel discontent and unfulfilled. Unfortunately, even if we don't fully accept that we have a Life Purpose, it is still very much there, and our inability to articulate our Life Purpose doesn't protect us from feeling the difference between being "on purpose" and not "on purpose". It is very challenging for most of us to not act on this purpose, and our lives feel disconnected, uncomfortable, and in some cases even dead!

The 1st step in finding our Life Purpose is to design a Life Purpose Statement that we can use as we work through the process of clarifying exactly what makes up our purpose in this world. A Life Purpose Statement will allow us to connect with our Life Purpose easily and quickly. It is like a big illuminated sign that will help us find our way out of the quicksand when we get stuck. It is our Life Purpose Statement and therefore we can make it as transformational, or as grand and sweeping as we wish. It is personal, and therefore not subject to the judgment, or ridicule, of other people.

Your 1st attempt at developing your own Life Purpose Statement will probably be fairly general – "I would like to help people have more productive relationships". This kind of statement unfortunately suffers from the fact that it is too vague to really motivate us to action. We need to focus on making the Life Purpose Statement as specific as we can to ensure that we have something to grab onto when we need it, and it needs to be clear and strong enough for us to easily access it if we feel we are "off purpose". It needs to describe the specific impact we want to have on the world around us, which we may not be able to express perfectly on the 1st attempt, but we need to stick with it until we are satisfied that it is specific, clear, and motivational.

In order to give the Life Purpose Statement the "pop" and "fizz" it needs to have real impact on us, it helps to find a metaphor that captures the essential quality of the Statement. This is often the most difficult part of the process, and the area where you may need some help, as most of us battle to see ourselves in the form of a metaphor, or an image. Do your best to keep the combination of the metaphor and the Life Purpose Statement concise, but impactful – not more than 20 words if possible, and don't be afraid to be really "out there". Your Life Purpose Statement can be corny, grandiose, or flowery, all of which are okay. It is not for general publication, and is only there for you to use so that you can fully experience the power of the Life Purpose in you.

Make your Life Purpose Statement big enough that it has tremendous and compelling power to motivate you to be in action in your life, and "on purpose", and Be Outstanding!

If you need help developing your Life Purpose Statement, hop on over to www.version8.com.au and use our contact form to schedule a chat with me. Or just leave us a comment below, or on our Facebook or Twitter feeds, whichever is easiest for you.