Where you are may not be where you want to be, but it’s a great starting point for where you want to go. The question is, what’s your destination?
That may be the hardest thing to figure out for nearly all of us. There are a few among us that know as kids they want to sing, or dance, or make people feel better. But the rest of us meander through life trying to divine what in the world we should be doing.
We’re usually in one of three stages:
I don’t know what I want to do with my life.
I sort of know, but I don’t know what to do first.
I think I’m on the path, but it’s taking too long.
It can be frustrating in this space because we just feel stuck! We want to do something, but we don’t know what to do so we do nothing. We seem lost in an endless maze of possibilities.
However, there is a way forward that is fun and fruitful despite the fog in our minds. Now I’ll warn you – my perspective is a bit unorthodox. But I completely agree with Mark Twain when he said, “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you always got.” I also believe if you wait to have all the answers you’ll be dead before you get started.
So grab a sheet of paper, turn it sideways and let’s try something new. Here’s our first 3 of 6 tips!
First, Pursue your passion and let purpose pursue you.
Developing a life of purpose has stymied many of us at the start line. We spend hours ruminating on the true meaning of life while others have gone on living. Then someone tells us to do what we’re passionate about, what we’d do for free if money were no object. What!?! Please…money will always be an object, even if you have a lot of it. Let’s be a bit more realistic.
What is it that you do that makes you smile from ear to ear? This is usually what you’re passionate about. Now just acknowledge it, don’t judge it. The quickest way to shut our selves down is by comparing our “thing” to somebody else’s “thing” and then deciding we’re not good enough. As my grandmother used to say, “foot on that!” There is a reason what you love makes your soul sing. Just hold on…it’ll be clear bye and bye.
If you do what you enjoy, your purpose will come calling. God tied it to what you’re good at, even if you don’t know it yet. Think about Moses. God chose him to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses must have wondered if God was a little off on this one because Moses was slow of speech, and here God was sending him off to talk to Pharaoh. But what God knew about Moses was that he was a champion for the underdog. He stood up for people when they were being mistreated and that’s whom you send in to lead an exodus – someone passionate about liberation and justice.
The secret to a purposeful life is that it pursues those who are already working. There is no progress, prosperity or purpose in sitting still.
What you can do right now: On the left side of your paper write down three things you enjoy. Don’t think too hard or you’ll try to impress yourself. And please don’t worry about if someone will pay you to do it. For now, just be true to you.
Second, Define success in a way that suits you!
We often define success based on what we have instead of who we are. We view people with wealth, fame, celebrity and power as successful, but people who pursue a life of service as significant. Must they be mutually exclusive? I don’t think so.
Success, at its root, is about you achieving your goals. That means there is no need for us to be bound by traditional views on what a successful life looks like. Forget the 1-2-3 we’ve all read on how to be successful. Just figure out what you want to accomplish, and let that be your guide.
Here’s something else to keep in mind – plans change. As life ebbs and flows, so too will our goals. How I defined success at 22 is very different than how I define it in my mid-40s. Be at ease about being flexible. Adjusting your goals doesn’t mean you failed. It means you had sense enough to aim in a new direction!
What you can do right now: Without thinking about it, write three goals down the right side of your paper. They don’t have to be earth shattering or profound. They just have to be yours. To get you started here are mine – lose ten pounds by end of summer, try something new every month, write a book.
Third, Decide on your best next step and let the rest of life unfold.
So we have some goals, know what we like to do, and now what? This is usually when our minds go into hyper drive just peppering us with millions of things we can do, but then we can’t figure out what to do first. It feels like sitting in your car at a 4-way stop, revving the engine but never taking your foot off the brake because you can’t figure out which way to turn.
Rest assured that none of us have a crystal ball. Don’t let not knowing what’s on the next page stop you from enjoying your life story. The best we can do is learn from our mistakes, make good decisions based on what’s in front of us, and trust God for the rest.
We have to relieve ourselves of the notion that we can always figure out the right answer. Sometimes we can only get to a better answer. And in the absence of that, we’ve got to go with an answer. Thomas Edison said, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
What you can do right now: It’s time to do a brain dump. In the middle of your paper, write down all the things you’ve been considering doing. Again, don’t think too long or you’ll be trying to tie it to other things on the page. Once you’ve written them all down close your eyes, twirl your finger over the page, and then allow it to drop on the paper. Whatever your finger lands closest to, that’s where you should begin this week.
I know it sounds ridiculous. It likely goes against every self-help, goal-setting, purposeful life book you’ve ever read. But consider this – we’ve all read them and we’re still stuck. Time to put the car in drive and ease on down the road.
Don’t know which way to turn? It’s all right…God doesn’t give us direction until we start to move. It’s okay to get started without having it all figured out. In fact, it’s expected that we’ll be flying blind some of the time. How else would we learn to trust God?
Don’t deny yourself the adventure of a walk of faith that defies the status quo! He’s given us dreams and infused us with passion for pursuing them. We’ve got everything we need to get started. It’s up to us to get in gear with what we’ve got!
We’d love to read your comments on how you get unstuck and get going! Be sure to check back later this week for the next 3 tips as we work together to get our lives in gear.
Loving on Me as I Love You! ❤
[…] It’s Time to Hit the Go Button, we talked about how to define our own success, pursue our passions, and get started right where we […]