Why you exist.

Your aim.

Your reason for being.

Your reason for getting up in the morning.

Answered by these questions:

Who am I?

What am I meant to do here?

What am I trying to do with my life?

Every one of us needs a reason for getting up in the morning.

How do you discover your purpose? 

This is not a problem to solve, but a process to 
engage in--perhaps life-long.

Victor Frankl suggested that we find meaning 
in life in three ways: (1) by doing a deed;  
(2) by experiencing a value; and (3) by suffering.

On the first point, notice what it is that you do 
and what your "gifts" are.  What work calls forth 
your gifts?  Where are your talents most active?

Second, what moves you?  Where are your passions?  
"What need in society do I exist to fulfill?"

Lastly, devastating events can be triggers, because 
they disrupt the comfortable order of our lives and 
cause us to reassess our purpose.  Use these 
interruptions to reflect on what you must get 
accomplished in life.

Clarity of purpose comes more easily through quiet,
reflective listening, noticing, and realizing, rather than 
active searching--most writers on this topic will agree.

Can you suggest some exercises a person or group 
might do to clarify purpose? 

Write your life's story.

Draw a timeline and dot it with significant events.  
Notice where the line is headed.

Write your obituary.  "People would remember me as one who ..."

What would you like to leave as your legacy?

Write or discuss with others how you express your natural talents.

Identify people who have inspired you and why.

Ask, "Why do I get up on Monday morning?"

What if you only have a year to live?  What must you get done? (to have no regrets)

If you were bestowed $10 million dollars, what would you do with it?

How do you add value to the world?  How do you "make a difference?"

What is your "natural work?"  Where do you feel most in your element?

What does your heart tell you is your calling? What moves you?

In a moment of solitude or on sabbatical, ask...

Envision a "well-lived" day, a perfect day.  Describe the components of it.

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EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
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What's your purpose?  Seven steps to find it...
http://www.one-purpose.com/

Former Keyzines on related topics:
Volume 3, June 2001- Coaching
Volume 5, August 2001 - Spirit at Work
Volume 15, June 2002 - Motivation
Volume 60, March 2006 - The Power of Vision

Write a unique Statement of Purpose (SoP)
http://www.statementofpurpose.com/

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ARTICLES/PUBLICATIONS                              
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Adrienne, Carol & Redfield, James.  
The Purpose of Your Life : Finding 
Your Place In The World Using 
Synchronicity, Intuition, And 
Uncommon Sense.  Harper Paperbacks, 
1999.

Bolles, Richard Nelson.  What Color Is 
Your Parachute 2006: A Practical Manual 
for Job-hunters And Career-Changers.
Ten Speed Press, 2005.

Heerman, Barry.  Noble Purpose: Igniting 
Extraordinary Passion for Life and Work.
QSU Publishing Company, 2004.

Jacobs, Richard.  What's Your Purpose?
Hodder & Stoughton Ltd., 2004.

Leider, Richard J.  The Power of Purpose: 
Creating Meaning in Your Life and Work.
San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler, 1997.

McCarthy, Kevin W.  The On-Purpose Person: 
Making Your Life Make Sense : A Modern Parable.
Pinon Press, 2001.

Pascarella, Perry & Frohman, Mark A. 
The Purpose – Driven Organization:  
Unleashing the Power of Direction and 
Commitment.  San Francisco:  Jossey-Bass, 
1989.

Senge, Peter, Joseph Jaworski, C. Otto Scharmer, 
and Betty Sue Flowers.  Presence : Human Purpose 
and the Field of the Future.  Cambridge: Mass: SOL, 
2004.

Wheatley, Margaret.  Leadership and the New Science:  
Learning About Organization from an Orderly Universe.  
San Francisco:  Berrett-Koehler, 2001.