FINDING YOUR PURPOSE
I
f you’re unsure
of your meaning-and-purpose, sorry, you don’t have one. If
you’re crying because your favorite hockey team lost the Stanley Cup or because
NBC canceled your favorite television show, guess what?
No meaning. No purpose.
On the contrary, if there’s something obsessive in your life keeping you
awake at night, congratulations, young Skywalker—the Force is strong with you.
And therein lies the chasm between
interests or commitment; shallow desires
don’t compel sacrifice, whereas a committed purpose sacrifices everything. It
borders obsession.
Again, consider the cancer corollary.
If you were diagnosed with cancer and your mortality came into focus, would
you struggle to find meaning-and-purpose? Would
hyperrealistic distractions
finally get the demotion they deserve? And what about passion? Would survival
and kicking cancer’s ass suddenly have the power to generate passion? You see,
meaning-and-purpose sit in the driver’s seat; passion rides shotgun. It inspires
you to do what others won’t, from breaking comfort zones to obsessing about
process and progress. In fact, meaning-and-purpose
are so powerful it can be
dangerous.
If you’re willing to do whatever it takes, your “whatever” might regress into
the unethical or even criminal activity. For example, in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s
classic
The Great Gatsby
, Jay Gatsby is a rags-to-riches socialite whose WHY for
becoming famously wealthy was to win the attentions and affections of a past
love. Except his fortune was nefariously obtained—a ravenous purpose sank him
into the abyss, where he found a young death.
The common thread among the famous
as well as the infamous is a
dominant meaning-and-purpose. And likewise, the common thread amongst the
SCRIPTED
sheeple is they have no meaning. Instead, hyperreality babysits—this
is why we have a society addicted to
Game of Thrones
and whoever wins some
stupid singing contest. With meaning, this shit cannot compete. Social media
showboating is no longer entertaining. Sporting events—fleeting
entertainment
not worthy of tears or a sibling smackdown. Pop culture: who’s dating whom,
who got fat, who’s styling a new bikini—a pointless insult and trivialization of
your purpose. Once you own that reality is
steeled by meaning-and-purpose,
hyperrealistic distractions are, well, distracting.
So how do you find your meaning if you’re unsure of yours?
Surprisingly, it can be virtually anything. The things that fire you up might
make me yawn. A powerful meaning could be something as insignificant as the
sight of a Lamborghini or a pompous friend mouthing-off. It could be the fear of
having to sardine yourself into a commuter train. Or it could be an uninvolved
parent who curses, “You’ll never amount to anything.” Many times, your “fuck
this” event (FTE) is enough to clarify purpose.
If you’re still coming up empty, try this: Imagine winning a billion dollars.
After winning the fortune,
what specifically would you do
? I’m not talking about
“travel the world” or “buy a fleet of exotic cars”—I’m talking about
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