Find Your Purpose...at Any Age

A few years ago on a lazy afternoon, I was lounging in the sun, reading one of my favorite magazines and came upon one of those quizzes. You know the ones, those questionnaires that supposedly teach you something about yourself that you didn’t already know, like “Are You a Clean Freak or Comfortably Cluttered?” As if the stacks of junk in every nook and cranny of your house didn’t already have you guessing that you had an aversion to cleanliness.

I know these quizzes are meant to be just for fun, because really, how could you not already know that you were a control freak, light sleeper, preferred pastries to muffins, etc.? And just how insightful can a 10-question quiz in a popular women’s magazine be, anyway?

The particular quiz I was taking that afternoon was cleverly crafted to rate your happiness level, and since I was pretty darn content in my life, if not downright joyful, I began taking this one with a smug smile on my face.

I knew I would rate at the top of the chart since I had recently gotten engaged to undoubtedly the most handsome man alive; had two gorgeous, happy children; and had just bought a new home. Seriously, how could I not ace this quiz?

And then I read question Number 13. (I’m not joking! It really was question number 13! That should have been a clue, huh?) The question that changed everything. The question that wiped that smirky smugness right off my face and had me questioning just how truly happy I was.

What was the question, you ask? Nothing more than, “What did you think you would be doing at your age?”

I was momentarily nonplussed.

What DID I think I would be doing at my age?

I really had no clue what I thought I would be doing, but I was beyond certain that I didn’t dream of being a secretary, my current job. No disrespect for the administrative profession. I was a member for nearly eight years.

But I wondered how I had gotten here? I looked back over the last few years and realized that I had landed in my present job as a result of life not going according to plan.

But if life HAD gone according to plan, I wondered what I would be doing now. If I had not gotten divorced, if the marriage had been stronger, if I had been happy in that relationship, if our family budget had been high enough to allow me to stay home with the kids…I think I would have been very content as a stay-at-home mom.

But as the kids got older, would I have needed something more to fill my time? Would I have taken up old hobbies or learned something new? Or even sought employment? I know I would have needed something to make me feel useful, like I was contributing. And then I realized…

I probably would have opened my own small business, most likely a solo operation, but an operation none the less.

As I came to this realization, I felt like something opened up in me, something that had been tight, squeezed, constricted for a long time. Like something finally fell into place. And I started to get excited. At that point, I knew I had to get out of my current job. And this is how my entrepreneurial journey began.

So if your life seems to be perfect in every respect, but you’re still feeling discontent, ask yourself, “If I was financially set for the rest of my life, I owned everything I’ve ever wanted, and I had the perfect relationship, what would I like to do with my time and resources that is meaningful?”

Living your life with intense purpose renews your passion for life and enables you to be the best you can be. It strengthens your self-confidence and, best of all, brings self-fulfillment. Find your purpose today, and give it all you've got!

To learn how you can discover your true path, visit LifeSMART Coaching.