Searching For Purpose

Searching for purpose

purpose-4

 

Several years ago I met Teresa at the elementary school harvest fair. Teresa encouraged me to get involved with the Christmas event that she organized each year. Along with a full-time job out of town for a nonprofit, this single mom managed to  organize a Christmas event for the elementary school each year, and put together Christmas care package with stockings for the homeless to hand out downtown.

This was one of those moments that makes you wonder what you’re doing with your life? If a single mom who commutes two hours a day working for a nonprofit can manage to pull together a huge Christmas event for an elementary school and have time to help the homeless what am I doing with my life?

Teresa is an amazing person and taught me and important lesson. All  of us have a pretty full plate, careers, children, commutes.  When you meet people that already have a pretty full plate but chooses to take on more than the average person to help others and less fortunate, it sure made me question what I was doing with my free time.

Last month I was reminded once again I could be doing a little more.  I met Rena, who told me about the book she  had written with her husband, workshops that they host, the coaching they do and the new radio show and podcast that was coming out. The focus here? Finding your passion and impacting others.
Extraordinary in its own right that one would feel so enthusiastic about impacting others that a  career has been created solely for that purpose!

Rena’s walking stick revealed the fact that she is legally blind. Did it hold her back from writing a book? Hosting a radio show? Leading workshops or coaching?

Two days later I entered the workshop.
We were encouraged to write down everything we do daily, weekly, monthly, yearly.
A  yellow post it package later, we each had a significant pile on our Lap.
Now for the challenge!
We were given a barometer to gauge our level of impact we are currently making in the lives of others.
As an example if you give a homeless man a sandwich that would help his hunger for the afternoon that is a example of A short-term impact rather than a permanent impact.

When challenged to keep only the Post-it’s that permanently impact others, we were left with a very small pile.  This activity really made me question what activities take the most of my time and what activities could make a permanent impact for others.

This workshop changed my perspective and really challenged me find ways to help others in a more permanent fashion.

 

Purpose wooden sign with a forest background

 

Have you met someone that changed the way you think? Changed your perspective?
Or challenged you to get out of your comfort zone?
I’d love to hear about it.