Quote:
Originally Posted by {aspiring_to_clarity}  I really do think that the first order of business is to find that pesky purpose. |
Indeed; I concur.
That said, can you define "purpose?" And I mean really define it, as in "purpose is X". Not
your purpose, but what a purpose actually is.
For months I worked with talents and strengths, not really understanding what those words meant. Now that I have an understanding--a good one--I can wield those tools like a sharp blade, cutting through things effectively.
Other people also know about strengths and talents, but they understand them not quite as well as I do, so they find the tools more challenging to use, or at least, don't get as much out of them. But, on the other hand, there are also people who know more about them than me--people like Marcus Buckingham and those with much more experience with the concepts and ideas behind talents and strengths than myself, as well as the real-world application.
If you want to find your purpose, you first need to know what you're looking for. I put the "find my purpose" project on hold to get a better idea of what I'm actually looking for in a purpose.
I think you'll find that your purpose represents a desire. Once you know what the criteria of that desire is, you'll have a much easier time with fulfilling it. First, you must become aware of your criteria and you do that by defining "purpose." Your answers may be different to mine, but only your answer matters.
Postscript
Personally, I'd ditch the idea of purpose and try out truth, love, and power if you understand how to apply them. This interview with Steve gives a good overview of the "how" to apply TL&P:
Steve Pavlina’s Secrets Of Truth, Love, And Power
Another idea: consider dropping the idea of purpose and directly doing what you think it will bring you.
E.g. I'd like to have a nice statement to help guide my actions--something that feels intuitively right to me so I know I can trust it completely--but I need to work on other projects to pay the bills, so I don't have time to explore that while I sit and let my finances go to hell. So I'm going after what I think a purpose will bring me--greater contribution to people and a greater sense of alignment.
Another idea to consider: do you think your soul defines a purpose for you, or do you think your soul incarnates in the physical with a certain area of development, a certain energy to contribute, and a certain background? I believe it's the latter, and as such, it helps to take those ideas into consideration when you're looking for your purpose, or trying to define "purpose." If you're looking to your soul for guidance, but it's only 20% soul influence (soul mandate, attributes and training, and primary life lesson), 80% physical influence (beliefs, talents, desires that have evolved while you're here, etc), then you might need to look elsewhere.