Why Study This Mantra...

You will learn how to apply everything you've learned and all the skills and motivations you have toward a problem that's bigger than yourself. This will set you up for your spiritual awakening!

"He who has a why can bear any how."

– Viktor Frankl

Introduction 

Now that you know who you are and what you want, and you've established a connection and compassion for the world, you're ready for your most important step – the step into something larger than yourself.

This month, you will find your purpose. You will learn to spend the rest of your life dancing with it. This month, you will go forth on your most glorious journey!

 

Before you begin...

Before you start these practices and challenges, take a moment to rate yourself on this mantra. Give yourself a score from 1-10 (10 being the highest). 

Do this again at the end of a month of practices and challenges. How much have you grown?

 

The Practices

Daily Practice

Live My Purpose

Today's affirmation: "How could I possibly do anything other than fully dedicate myself to my purpose?"

Today I will focus on living my life's calling. I will live larger than me. I will humbly offer my genius to the world. I will apply it to something big and important... Bigger and more important than me! I will remind myself, this is the work that I must do.

 

Monthly Challenge

Find & Live Your Purpose

If you already know what that thing is – that big problem – that thing that you want to spend your life on – that thing you want to dedicate yourself to, then we hope by now, you're already working on it. If you're not, now's the time. Plot your course toward your north star. This month is your month. Seize the day.

If you don't know what that is, this is your month to figure it out. Use the prompts in your journal to guide you through this.

Once you've gone through the exercise and you've determined your purpose, reconcile that back to your work and how you spend your time. How far off are you? Why have you made the choices you've made? Does this make you want to change your answer? Rinse and repeat. If you're not sure, sit with this for a while. This is an important one. Try it on in different contexts. Beat it up. This will be the drumbeat you march to for the rest of your life.

You likely won't have to make major changes to your life. You're likely there already... or close... to a life that lets you live this purpose. All you have to do is start living life through your purpose's lens.

Are you worried about the problem being too big for you to make a meaningful difference? What if, for example, you wished to save humanity from a deadly disease? If you save just one life, is it worth it? Of course. Think about what the consequences would be if you do nothing, or if you fail. Then be stubbornly optimistic. Give your meaning life. Take action infused with meaning. Stay laser focused. Approach the problem with love.

You can do this.

 

Journaling Practice

Find Your Purpose

Having meaning in your life breaks down into two components. Both are important to living a life that's happy and meaningful.

1. Purpose: These are the aspirations or goals that you have. It can apply to all sorts of aspects of your life such as reasons for being in certain relationships or vocations.
2. Coherence: This part relates to how consistent you feel when assigning meaning in your life. Do all of your actions seem to align under your bigger picture? Is this true across all of the various domains in your life, like your job, your family, your friends, your home, etc.?

Your goal is to identify what gives your life purpose, what makes your life feel like it makes sense, what makes you feel like your life matters and you are worthwhile. There is tremendous value in this. 

The trick is knowing what truly motivates you. It can't simply be personal achievement, nor your family, nor your community. It must resonate with your values. Your soul.

You can’t stop at surface level. You need to find your root cause. You need to break down what you think you want into the smallest, most abstract bits. You don’t want to be a doctor, you want to give people hope when hope is lost. You don’t want to be a pilot, you want to help others discover the world. You get the idea.

Take our your journal and use the following exercises to help get there. There are a few things to keep in mind.

• First, it may help to think of this effort as ongoing. If you don’t have a Eureka Moment, don’t fret. Most people don’t. It is more likely that you will do the exercises, iterate, stir, then at some point look back and realize you answered the question a few months ago. 
• Second, there may be more than one purpose for you and it may change over time. That’s okay.
• Third, it’s not something that strikes you like lightning. It’s not something that comes to you like a gift. It’s something you find by looking for it. It’s something that you discover by analyzing your own behavior.

You can do this! Let's get going! 

 

...Through Revisiting Other Work You've Done

Start by going back to any past work you've done, synthesizing it all together, and seeing what it tells us. If you haven't done the work from these other mantras, we highly recommend you do! If you're not subscribed, you can find these mantras in the store.

COMPASS

• A good summary of my main views are...
• My strengths are...

REAL

• My values are...

PLEDGE

• My pledge was...

WRITE YOUR OWN STORY

• If I were to extract a moral from my written story, it would be...

 

...Through Your Relationships

Love is a great source of meaning. Examine the relationships you're in and define the reason(s) you're in them. Don't over-think this or try to get too critical. It's simply meant to help you understand what purpose there is in your life from the relationships you've nurtured.

 

...Through Outcome*

Another great way to develop an understanding of your calling is to ask yourself what outcome you're most passionate about. Complete this sentence:

"I want there to be more ___________ in the world because I was here."

What goes there for you? Don't think about it. Instead, feel it.

• Is it something for the senses, like beauty or music?
• Something for the body, like fitness or caring for the weak?
• Possessions, like inventions or gifts?
• Justice or morality?
• Love or compassion?
• Entertainment?
• Helping protect the Earth?
• Faith?
• Truth or knowledge?
• Is it a particular relationship?

Pick one. Think about why that's your answer. Write a short paragraph about it. 

 

...Through Action

To quote Viktor Frankl, "Meaning doesn't just get gifted to you. You must find it. You don't do this by sitting and doing nothing. You do it by doing. By living your life, and moving toward the activities that call to you. Then, reflect back on those activities and ask yourself, 'What is it about them that draws me in?'"

Spend some time reflecting on what you already do – what you gravitate to – for guidance. Why do you do those things? What is it about that thing at the deepest level? There is likely good reason for your behavior. What meaning are you likely trying to extract from it? Write it down.

 

The Reasoning

For a definitive look at this month's mantras and practices, including what philosophers, theologians, psychologists, and scientists throughout history have thought, taught, and advocated, click below.

* This exercise came from Richard Nelson Bolles's What Color Is Your Parachute.