How to Discover YOUR PURPOSE.

1. WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU’RE GOOD AT.  Take a minute to think about or write down the things that excited you as a child or even the things that excite you today.  Just write them down. When I was young, I constantly drew pictures of faces and different outfits and fashion and I LOVED MAGAZINES and MUSIC.  That’s why I started AMMA JO magazine and that’s why I chose to be an independent artist.  Your gift may be a little different.  Maybe you are just a GREAT detail person or maybe your gift is a little more abstract- maybe you’re great with PROJECTS or great with ADMINISTRATION.  There are a variety of gifts that you may have, so don’t limit yourself, but WRITE down what you’re good at.
2. WHAT DO YOU VISUALIZE THE MOST?  If you could pick any image of yourself (a POSITIVE one)- any image of yourself 10 years from now, what would it be?  When I close my eyes, always see myself on a stage.  I always see myself inspiring people and giving them tips and resources to help them make their dreams come true.  What do you see?  Maybe you see someone with their own business.  Maybe you see someone with a successful blog and lifestyle.  Maybe you see a designer.  Maybe you see a successful mother or father.  Maybe you see someone with a successful commercial cleaning business.  Maybe you see yourself as a news reporter or a financial analyst.  I won’t place ANY limitations on you, but WHAT DO YOU SEE.  IMAGINATION is very important because you have one for a reason.  USE IT.  Imagine where you want to be and no matter how big the dream is, TAKE one step in that direction.  What you visualize the most has a lot to do with your purpose and fulfilling your passion.
3. WHAT LEGACY DO YOU WANT TO LEAVE?  When you think about your life, what do you want to leave behind?  See, it’s so important to start with the end in mind.  We do it in business.  We do it on our jobs and now it’s time to do it in our own life.  Not to scare you, but to motivate you- LIFE on earth doesn’t last forever.  It’s temporary so it’s time to get serious about what you want out of your life.  Don’t underestimate yourself either.  Don’t underestimate what you can have and who you can become.  You can leave a legacy if you want to.  My legacy is INSPIRATION.  I want to inspire people and infuse their spirit and soul with hope, from the simple to the greater things in life.  How do you want to make this world a better place?  Now, you may think, ‘I’m really not that great and I’m not a big deal’  That is so far from the truth.  The truth is YOU ARE A MIRACLE.  Nothing is impossible for you, but you need to believe it.  When you write down the legacy you want to leave, it will inspire you to ask the question, ‘HOW’? That will lead you into a place of beginning to discover your purpose and passion.
4. ASK YOUR THREE CLOSEST FRIENDS.  I am a big fan of having a FEW close and intimate friends- just a few people who know who you really are.  Ask them, ‘What do you think I’m good at?’  The reason why I tell you to ask people is many times, we unfortunately don’t have a great perspective of ourselves and the people around us sometimes see MORE of us than WE do.  So, ask your friends what you’re good at and you’ll be amazed at the answers you get.
5. DON’T LIMIT YOURSELF.  Many of us seek the obvious, but I want to encourage you to look beyond the obvious.  You may not be a singer or an artist or something that is easy to articulate.  For example, maybe your purpose is simply, TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF CHILDREN.  You may choose to do that a number of ways.  Maybe you can set up a non-profit.  Maybe you can assist or partner with another non-profit.  Perhaps you can start an initiative or your own event to collect funds or food or clothing.  Don’t limit yourself.  Maybe your goal in life is simply, TO BE AN AWESOME MOTHER.  Maybe you have some great tips that you’ve learned and you can turn those tips into a BOOK to inspire other women.  There are a million ways to live out your purpose.  Don’t limit yourself.
6. WHAT ARE YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT?  Passion is a huge determining factor.  Passion is a sure way to drive you in the right direction.  What are you passionate about?  I’m passionate about expression.  I am passionate about self-discovery.  I am passionate about individualism and that’s why I choose music and the arts as a means of expression.  Maybe there’s some type of issue that you’re angry about.  Perhaps it’s politics.  Maybe you want to make a change in the community and it may be time for you to run for public office.  Perhaps you are passionate about education and the school systems anger you.  Start something! Do something about it!  That’s what leads you into discovery.  When you start solving the problems of other people, you start to realize your full potential.  It’s time to LIVE YOUR LIFE on FIRE.  Passion will drive you in the right direction and it is the key to unleashing what’s inside.
7. DEVELOP SELF BELIEF.  It is truly important that you at least have a great foundation for believing.  In a prior blog post, I wrote about BELIEF BEING THE HEART’S PATHWAY.  Look at belief as something that OPENS the door and rides underneath the wings of your action. You must believe that YOU HAVE A PURPOSE.  I am convinced more than ever that as a society, we MUST train our kids and our emerging talent to believe in themselves and teach them to solve problems, not to get JOBS.  We’re too focused on the low hanging fruit of just mere existence.  If we’re going to solve the world’s problems, then we need to BELIEVE that our existence matters and start thinking about more than just surviving.  All I’m asking you to do is BELIEVE that you have a purpose.  That’s it.  KNOW that it’s true and then go from there.  Believing that will lead to a place of excitement and discovery….more than EVER before.
8. KNOW THAT LIFE IS A JOURNEY.  Your purpose may evolve and build upon itself.  For example, I NEVER knew that I was a great leader and never dreamed that I could lead people.  Someone gave me the opportunity and I discovered that…WOW, I CAN DO THIS.  So, in my 30’s, I put ‘BUILDING GREAT LEADERS’ in my purpose box!  I now have the desire to get out there and talk to emerging leaders about how they can effectively build and manage a team.  So, that’s just an example that success is a journey and at different points in your life, you can DISCOVER new things.  That’s what is so exciting.  You can unravel fantastic things about yourself.
9. IT TAKES ACTION.  Like anything else in life, you’ve got to have FAITH and TAKE ACTION to get results.  Discovering your purpose will require you to build up faith and walk through uncertain situations.  Think of your life as if you are unraveling the greatest gift there ever was.  You’re living out the biggest treasure of your life and the adventure awaits you.  You have to take action and start acting on your ideas to get to the bottom of this!  TAKE ACTION.  In one of my blog posts, I wrote about CREATING A NEW SEASON in your life.  You are the one that holds that trigger and it will take YOU TAKING action to start making your life different.  If you want a different life, you’ll need to start creating it.  Make decisions that matter to you.  Find a career opportunity or create a business that cultivates the talents you have inside of you.  That will start to stir things up inside of you and you’ll be able to SEE what talents you have and how to use them effectively.  Remember, we’re not talking about money.  We’re talking about purpose.  We’re having a higher conversation about your life today.  I guarantee you, money alone will not make you happy or fulfilled.
10. USE WHAT YOU HAVE WHERE YOU ARE.  It is so critical to my earlier point that we take action.  If you know you’re good at something, it’s time to USE IT.  You may not know the full picture, but maybe you know a part of it.  Run with that.  If you like fashion, start writing articles about it.  Start a fashion blog.  Get an inexpensive camera and start snapping photos.  If you love to write, write a book and make it a PDF- start sharing it.  Use WHAT YOU HAVE.  Many times, we get stuck because we don’t have ALL of the answers.  YOU don’t NEED all of the answers.  YOU HAVE EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO SUCCEED.  Write now, you have what you need to get to where you want to go.  Believe it.  Many times, we are SURROUNDED by clues and opportunities.  USE THEM.  Don’t ignore them.

Labels: inspiration, living, overcome discouragement, personal power