3 Ways To Create More Purpose In 2018
What is the seemingly most unanswerable question in the entire world? Or even in the universe.
What is the meaning of life?
At some point we have all pondered this question. Even a baby full of wondrous naivete must question why it is here. And it is the WHY that is at the heart of it all and the answer to this eluding question.
As human beings we need a grand purpose (a full caps WHY) to guide our intentions and actions in the world. In the Way of the Superior Man, David Deida states, “The core of your life is your purpose. Everything in your life, from your diet to your career, must be aligned with your purpose if you are to act with coherence and integrity in the world.”
But how do you find your purpose and live by its guiding force everyday? Here are three ways to begin this journey.
1. Movement Practice
Your body needs an outlet to move around the energy within you, otherwise it becomes stagnant and eventually toxic. My yoga teacher Eoin Finn calls it, “issues in the tissues.” Our body stores all of the unresolved emotions from our daily living in our muscles, body fluids, and organs.
The disagreement you had with a coworker that left you feeling frustrated might have lodged some tension in your shoulders. While the passing away of a loved one may have created a scar of grief within your heart.
A daily movement practice can allow you to stay on top of the build up of emotions. You can go for a run through the woods. Hop on a elliptical in the gym. Or move through a yoga flow. What you do isn’t as important, what matters is that you move your body in a way that nourishes you.
2. Gratitude
Your brain is wired to see the negative within situations. This isn’t any fault of yours, it’s the way we evolved in our ancient past to protect us from danger. But we are at a point in our human history where the negativity bias - the phenomena where humans give more psychological weight to bad experiences than good ones - no longer serves us to live at our full potential.
The most effective way to reset your mind from habitual patterns of negativity and to start thinking more positively about your life is to begin a gratitude practice. Start a Gratitude Journal where you write down three things you’re grateful for when you wake up. Create a Kudos Envelope where you store positive achievements from your life. Get creative and find a practice that works for you. Personally, I repeat everything I’m grateful for as I wash the dishes in the morning.
3. Creative Date
We all have a creative spark within us. I have people who tell me, “I’m just not a very creative person.” But this isn’t true, they’re just not viewing creativity in the proper context of how it applies to their life.
There is a Dad who comes into the recreation center I work at who loves to play with his kids in the pool. He is constantly finding creative ways to entertain and engage them.
But maybe you hate chlorine or don’t have kids. You may enjoy working with your hands and problem solving while doing home renovations. Or any multitude of things that don’t see creative but secretly are.
Once you discover your hidden creativity take yourself out on a date. If you do enjoy home renovations go on a tour of hardware stores around town while you gather inspiration for your next project.
The core purpose of your life doesn’t just spontaneously become clear one day. It takes consistent daily work to discover your WHY and then once you have it there is a lifetime of refinement. The three practices above will begin you on this journey and sustain you as the grand question of life becomes your existence.
This article was written for us by our Brand Warrior, the awesome Michael Toru. For more about Michael, check out his page here