I started writing this blog at 11:32 on a Saturday morning.
‘Work on a Saturday?!’ you may be asking. ‘Wouldn’t you rather be doing something else?’.
And the honest answer is ‘No’.
… Because I love it.
The well of passion I have for sharing practical, science-based, and helpful psychological messages with the world runs deep.
The love I have for my life’s mission (maybe like any love) is intangible. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but I always know it’s there. I may not have the perfect words to describe it, but I know it exists within me.
The endless wellspring of energy I draw from every day is partly related to my goals. And it’s definitely intertwined with my values. But, it’s deeper than those things. It’s bigger, and more expansive, and even more enduring. In words, it can best be described as …
My purpose!
I’m buzzing with purpose right now as I write these words, knowing my community is going to read them, and hoping that they will help in some way.
But even when I’m not brimming with enthusiasm, or when I’m taking a momentary pause from my plans, my purpose is in there smouldering away, a dormant fire in my belly just waiting to be rekindled at any moment.
And, I have to tell you, living out my dreams in real life feels good.
Not the type of ‘jump for joy like you’re in a Toyota ad’ good (although sometimes it is!).
It’s more like a deep inner voice that whispers ‘you’re on the right path’.
A groundedness, knowing that you will rise with determination and sleep with satisfaction, no matter what the day brings.
A focus that shines the spotlight so brightly on your dreams that any distractions seem to fade into the background.
I am incredibly grateful to be living with such purpose, passion, and direction. It is a true blessing that I cherish every day.
But the cherry on top is that a huge part of my purpose is helping other people to connect with theirs!
Why is a sense of purpose important in our lives?
My first answer to this question is simple … because we know it is, deep down.
We all know the feeling when we are moving with a sense of ease, purpose, and direction … it’s as if we’re cruising down the river of life, flowing with the current.
And we all know the feeling when we are standing still with a sense of stuckness, hopelessness, or aimlessness; as if unkind seas have shipwrecked us upon the shores of life, and we don’t quite know where to go from here.
This alone is more than enough to motivate me to live my life with a sense of purpose, and to encourage others to do the same.
But there are also many additional benefits of living with purpose. Three, in particular, come to mind:
1. You generally become more ‘successful’.
While living a purpose-filled life is very much about doing what makes you happy, many of my clients also tend to benefit from greater ‘success’ as society defines it. This may mean a more profitable business, a richer family life, or extra free time to do what they love. Thank goodness, it’s not always a matter of having to choose between a life of personal meaning and societally-defined success.
‘Pay attention to what makes you feel energized, connected, and stimulated. Follow your intuition, do what you love, and you will do more than succeed. You will soar.’
– Oprah Winfrey
2. You let go of habits that were holding you back.
I originally started to explore meaning and purpose based therapy with my clients after reading a study written by one of my team members, Dr. Robyn Andrews. Robyn’s research showed that the higher our general satisfaction with our lives, the less emotional eating we do! It seems that the more purpose we have in our lives, the less need we have to distract ourselves or escape from them with temporary ‘pleasures’ such as emotional eating, impulse shopping, or doom scrolling on our devices. Our lives become so full that there’s just not much room left for these things! And, because we are no longer overdoing them, the occasional indulgence often becomes more enjoyable anyway. We’re enjoying the ‘main meal’ of life more, so the ‘dessert’ becomes optional 🙂
‘When a person can’t find a deep sense of meaning, they distract themselves with pleasure.’
– Viktor Frankl
3. You may live longer.
Viktor Frankl, the psychiatrist who wrote the above quote, is one of the godfathers of meaning-based therapy. The therapy he created, Logotherapy, literally means ‘Meaning Therapy’.*
Frankl has an incredible personal story as a Holocaust survivor that is equally harrowing and inspiring. He was a Jewish psychiatrist, who survived multiple Nazi concentration camps over the course of his lifetime. He developed Logotherapy in the camps, based on his observations that two prisoners sharing the same medical condition (such as malnutrition, physical exhaustion, or a particular disease) could have very different outcomes. As a medical doctor, Frankl observed that prisoners who had a reason to live were far more likely to continue living than prisoners who did not. This led him to conceptualise the ‘Will to Meaning’; the assumption that the primary motivational force of an individual is to find meaning in life, and not only is a drive towards personal meaning required to thrive, it is an inherent part of their actual life force.
His understanding of this reality, and the importance of us having a purpose for living, lead him to make his life purpose to help others find meaning and purpose in their lives.
‘(S)he who has a Why to live for can bear almost any How.’
― Friedrich Nietzsche
After basing my work with clients (and much of my own life!) on Frankl’s Logotherapy for over a decade, and reading all of his books, I was surprised when a colleague sent me this rare video of him delivering a lecture. If you watch the first two minutes, you will experience an enthusiastic, charismatic, and funny Dr. Frankl. His aliveness, joy, and connection with the audience can only enhance our view of him as a person, and underline his message that a sense of meaning, purpose, and direction is vitally important for all of us to thrive, no matter what our life experiences.
Wow, what a roller coaster of a blog – I feel emotional having written it, so I hope you’re okay having read it!
Living with purpose is something I’m proud to say I think I do really well – I place a lot of importance on it, believing that it’s worth almost any sacrifice (it’s now 4:03 in the afternoon, and I’m moving past the determined feelings of the start of the day, and closer towards the satisfied feelings at the end! I will take some time to relax when I’m done, but it will be a reward for doing what matters, instead of a distraction from it!).
And helping others find their passion is something I experience immense joy from doing – I’m actually surprised I haven’t written about it before now!
I really hope that this personal and professional reflection has helped you in some way – whether it’s given you pause for contemplation about where you are going in life, a helpful idea to take with you on your journey, or just reinforced your steadfastness to your chosen life path.
And living a purpose-filled life is an ongoing journey, so I will share more ideas with you about how you can uncover, connect with, and live out your personal purpose soon.
(To keep in touch with what I am going to share on living a life filled with meaning, purpose, and direction, please join my e-community here – it’s free!)
By writing this blog for you, you’ve helped me to connect with my purpose, so for that I thank you. And – indeed – I hope I have returned the favour in some way 🙂
Yours in living a life filled with meaning, purpose, direction, and passion,
Glenn
P.S. If you would like me to personally support you to find your purpose in 2025, I have created a 12-week Discover & Live Your Purpose live webinar series, which starts on February 10 in my online program. There are 60 places available, and if you sign up now, you can secure your place AND enjoy a complimentary 30-day trial membership in the program, which means you can experience all the benefits the program has to offer, on me, until the live webinar series starts!
*The name ‘Logotherapy’ is a combination of the Greek word ‘logos’, which literally means ‘meaning’, and the English word ‘therapy’. The basic premise of the approach is that the primary motivational force of an individual is to find meaning in life, and the therapy is directed at helping that person find, connect with, and live out that meaning.
