Speed blinds
A bumped into a good friend yesterday. Over the last, call it 10 years, he had been running hard. Now, he had reached a brief season where the sea was still. Life had slowed down a bit. Work was in a great place. His family was good. But, nevertheless, he felt that something was a bit off, and he struggled with the feeling. He felt that he needed something to pour himself into.
I describe that empty feeling as a purpose shock. He felt a lack of purpose. Position, material possessions, money, equity among peers, none of that stuff can remedy a purpose shock.
If you haven’t been there, you will. That feeling of “what am I doing” will hit you. And, all those hard questions will follow, like “is it worth it” and “does it matter.”
The purpose shock lies dormant during the speed of life. We run hard at work and in life. Fires need to be tended too. Problems addressed. Strategies built. Calendars planned. Children’s summers meticulously scheduled. Our purpose is naturally built by the speed of life. And, when you are spinning all the plates, it is fulfilling. It seems to be your deep purpose.
But, the speed of life blinds us. When life slows down, clarity increases. You see where you have been clearly and the fog lifts a bit for the journey ahead. Then, the big question hits. The question that causes purpose shock.
Why?
This is the reason professional athletes struggle when they leave the arena. It is the reason why some struggle to find their why after leaving a position where they felt they had equity. It is the reason people struggle when kids leave home. People struggle with the calm that happens after the speed of life slows. When the quiet hits, the purpose shock arrives.
The key is to flip the question to a statement in your life. Why isn’t a question, but it is your purpose.
The fire of a personal why can’t be extinguished. It is consistent. It is deep. It is a perpetual fountain of motivation and purpose.
Find your personal why, your meaning, your purpose. Write it simply, be able to say, and consistently use it for self talk.
A motivating why never has anything to do with you. A purpose-driven why turns you into a servant. A fulfilling why always impacts other people.
And, a why truly lived out is like a domino. Others are impacted and motivated to continue the why.
The scary question of why can be turned into a statement that builds your legacy.
Impact others. Live generously.