How to live a purposeful life
To live a purposeful life is essential for our level of happiness. According to a study, conducted by Patrick Hill, an assistant professor of psychology at Carleton University in Ottawa, and Nicholas Turiano of the University of Rochester Medical Center, people who live on purpose, lives longer and have 15% lower risk of premature death. They feel emotionally better and suffer less from stress and anxiety. It is not surprising because a sense of direction in our life and deeper meaning can increase our inner peace. We feel more in harmony with ourselves and other people and have better emotional balance. To live a purposeful life, we do not necessarily need to change our life path, leave a job, make a career shift, break up a significant relationship, or make some other big life-changing decision. However, these changes can happen as a result of our inner transformation. Often, the adjustments in the outer world are the inseparable part of the inner shift. Living a purposeful life does not happen in an instant. Most frequently, it is a process that needs time. If we acknowledge that our lives need a purpose, then we are ready for a change. A call for change can come in many different ways. Sometimes, it is depression, anxiety, illness, break up, job loss, loss of someone significant in our lives, etc. Interestingly, this call can come even if we live a comfortable and successful life. In that case, if we feel empty and bored in spite of favorable circumstances, then we are invited to go deeper and give our lives more meaning. To find out how to live a purposeful life, we need to understand where to start and what we can do.
To find out the answers to the questions “How?” and “Where to start?”, life coaching offers valuable tools and techniques that can help us navigate through hard times and find a sense of direction, even though we are in the middle of the crisis. In this way, our journey will not seem as lonely as we can perceive it. On the other hand, clarity and insights we gain through life coaching will help us get in touch with our inner strength and courage, and lift our spirits to enjoy the process.
Be authentic
This step sounds simple, but it can be very hard when it comes to practice. Namely, being authentic means living our inner truth, which can put us in a very uncomfortable position. First, we need to recognize how much we try to be perfect in our everyday lives. In our modern world, we receive many messages from the media, our environment, and our society that tell us subtly what we need to beor what we need to have to be happy. For many of us that could mean to live up to someone’s standards, not even noticing that they are not ours. To be authentic, we need to quiet our mind and listen to our inner wisdom. Through quiet observation of our behavior, thoughts and reactions, we can easily recognize this conditioning and choose to behave, think, and act more in tune with our inner being.
Expose vulnerabilities
When we begin to understand who we really are, we should let go of our need to be perfect in front of other people. To accept ourselves fully and completely, we can face the real challenge to become aware of our flaws and vulnerabilities. This challenge teaches us to love ourselves simply for being human. In a book The Gifts of Imperfection, written by Brene Brown, a research professor at the University Of Houston Graduate College Of Social Work, accepting vulnerability is considered as a key element in the process of letting go of our need to be perfect. According to Brene, exposing our vulnerability helps us feel more real and connects us with other people on a deeper level.
Cultivate braveness
We cannot be authentic, live purposeful lives, and stay in the comfort zone at the same time. Staying in the comfort zone for too long means that we are scared to live our truth and try new things. Lead authentic life forces us to step out of the comfort zone and take risks. These risks should not necessarily be huge. They can be something simple that places us in an uncomfortable position, which can help us break through our limiting beliefs. For example, we can find ourselves in a situation, risking showing our true feelings, even though we can be perceived as silly, awkward or stupid. Without braveness, it is almost impossible. Make peace with uncomfortable feelings When we decide to follow our inner truth and live a purposeful life, we, in fact, choose uncertain path. For many people, this can be the scariest thing in the whole process. We encounter our fears. Until we step out of our comfort zone, our fears hibernate. But, what is the purpose to live a limited, predicted life? Emptiness and boredom are the common signs that we are stuck in a rut. We cannot deceive our inner being and pretend that everything is fine. We often get the signals fromour emotions and our bodies that we are not happy. Willingness to live with uncertainty helps us confront fears and find inner power. In this way, we can make a huge shift from feeling helpless and safe to a place of power, self-confidence, and fulfillment.
Faith
Faith is a crucial factor in purposeful life. To strengthen faith, we should consider the following question: What kind of Universe do we live in? This question can point out on our core beliefs. If we choose to believe that we live in the chaotic Universe, we will hardly find any purpose or meaning in many life situations, especially in difficult ones. We can easily feel like a victim, without any power to cope with hardships. If we believe that we live in orderly Universe, where all events havetheir purpose and higher meaning, we will have more trust and faith. According to many spiritual teachers, faith is the opposite of fear. Without faith, we will not be able to overcome fears, limiting beliefs, and doubts.
Having a purpose is especially important when we face huge life difficulties. Our perception, willingness to find the inner truth, humility and connectedness through a place of vulnerability, courageous actions, resilience to uncertainty and faith can help us to see hardships as life challenges and a call to find deeper meaning. The purpose is usually hidden from us, especially if we live a busy modern lifestyle. If we have a purpose, we will perceive life difficulties as challenges. We believe that these challenges carry a significant message that we need to discover. Behind difficulties, there are hidden gifts. We can overcome life challenges only if understand why they happen, i.e. what is their purpose. Challenges often help us letting go of limiting beliefs, behaviors, blockages that prevent us from living our lives fully. Life-coaching supports us when we struggle to understand what these challenges are all about. It will give us priceless resources to cope better with these situations. Life coaching helps us feel our own power and encourages us to face our limiting beliefs, which we otherwise can hardly see. After learning our lessons, we can grow stronger and more self-confident, and our lives will gain more joy, happiness, and a sense of adventure.
