Not knowing why you are going wherever it is that you are going sounds silly, but so often folks live life without thinking about their purpose. We believe that thinking about your purpose and trying to identify what it might be is one of the most impactful things you can do to level up your life, career, and general level of happiness and fulfillment. Having a sense of what your why is will help you become a better decision maker which inevitably will improve your life. Below, you’ll find some interesting discussions, stories and perspectives around find your purpose.
Elaf Hussein
It is one thing to know that you can make art, but it is another thing to find a direction to create around. I’ve enjoyed making art for a very long time, but at a certain point my art needed to do more than please the eye. Finding a motif and direction when making my work didn’t come easy. Read More>>
Wacinque Amistad Kaizen BeMende
I found my purpose first by being curious about puzzles or how things work together. I also found that I tended to dive deep into what I call my Nerd addiction, bingeing on all aspects of the focus, starting with the definition. Purpose is the reason something exists or is done–it’s the guiding aim, intention, or goal behind actions or creations. Read More>>
Lauren Ruvo Carroll
Finding my purpose is ever-evolving. I think if you were to ask my 20-year-old self what my purpose was I would have given you one answer and if you were to ask me now, I think the answer has shifted quite a bit because as I’ve grown, evolved, and experienced the world my priorities have changed too. Read More>>
Kristy Pace
I had a long journey to find my purpose. When I was younger I always loved theatre, but I thought I’d be a lawyer and then a Senator, because I kept being told that theatre could not be a real job. When I went to college I studied pre-law and theatre and then went on to Law School. Read More>>
Pernell McNear
I found my purpose the same way a lot of people do—by living, hurting, learning, and paying attention to what pulled on my spirit the hardest. For me, that pull has always been toward helping people, especially those who feel forgotten, overlooked, or weighed down by what life has handed them. My mission is simple: to help uplift fallen humanity in whatever way I can. Read More>>
Calladitos
Our purpose didn’t arrive all at once, it revealed itself slowly, the way a mural emerges layer by layer. We started painting in the streets more than a decade ago, simply driven by curiosity and the joy of creating together. Read More>>
Savannah Staples
Growing up, I struggled with mental health in many ways. The one thing that always gave me hope to keep going and the strength to get up day after day was music. I listened to music, covered songs, or wrote, and it was the only thing that was able to make me feel real. Music was the realest thing for me. Read More>>
Francisco Ratti
It all started when I was a kid, and I wanted to paint. I remember I loved coloring the figures in school, it was my favorite activity. In elementary school, every time a new season started, we’d make a colored cover page, and it was my favorite moment of the year. And when my classmates started seeing how I drew, we started having drawing competitions. Read More>>
Muktar Yusuf
Well… Read More>>
Jennfer Moore
For a long time, I woke up every day feeling like I was just going through the motions. I had responsibilities, I had people depending on me, but inside I felt directionless — like I was living, but not really living with purpose. Read More>>
Deborah Olivia Farmer
I found my purpose the moment I realized that what I had survived, what I had questioned, and what I had prayed through was never just about me. My purpose revealed itself in layers, but the spark began in the mid 90s when I was a young woman working in Chicago media. Read More>>
Katie K. May
As a DBT-Linehan Board of Certification Clinician™ and the founder and executive director of Creative Healing, Teen Support Centers, I’ve helped thousands of teens learn to cope with overwhelming emotions and understand their experiences with depression, anxiety, and self-harm. Read More>>
Anna Morgan
Honestly, I didn’t find my purpose in one big lightning bolt moment. It felt more like following little breadcrumbs life kept leaving for me. I grew up in Moscow, in a world where people didn’t really talk about purpose. You picked something stable, you stuck with it, and you hoped it would be enough. Read More>>
Nala Asa Shakur
I remember specifically trying to find my purpose in life around 2017 when I first started my healing journey. It took me a while but I knew I had to go within myself to really find my purpose. I had to find out what I was passionate about; what things I did that lit a fire in me. Read More>>
Joan Maloof
Joan (Lukas) Maloof was born with an affinity for plants. She was fascinated by them and wanted to learn more about them. She majored in Plant Science at the University of Delaware and graduated with Distinction and Honors. In 1978 she was awarded the Dr. John W. Heuberger Award (for most promising student). Read More>>
Tim Anderson
By accident, as far as I’m concerned. I wrote a book about returning to the movements we were born to make and the book fell into the right hands at the time. This lead to an opportunity to teach others how they are designed to move so that they can feel amazing in their own bodies. Read More>>
Jackie Schletter
I’ve always loved the natural world and focused on science driven subjects in school, but I spent nearly twenty years in veterinary medicine before I had the opportunity to have photography be anything more than a hobby. The more time I spent in the field, the more I realized that photographing wildlife wasn’t just about making beautiful images. Read More>>
Kristen Hazelton
How did I find my purpose? It’s equal parts meaningful and mundane. I’ve enjoyed taking photos since I got my first camera in 2005, and loved photographing events for family and friends – the joy and excitement in baby showers, the anticipation of a bride getting ready, or tearful moments at a wedding remembering relatives that have passed on. Read More>>
Katy Lopes
My purpose unfolded slowly, over many years, shaped by both my spiritual path and the journey me and my husband, Lucas, took together. I actually began my spiritual work long before coming to the United States. Read More>>
Edna Mancia
I found my purpose by looking back at who I have always been. From a very young age, I have had a heart for helping people, whether it was offering support, listening, or simply trying to make someone’s day a little brighter. That desire to make the world even a little better has always been a constant in my life. Read More>>
Christopher Brown
I didn’t find my purpose in one dramatic “aha” moment – it was a gradual unfolding over time and eventually, it turned out that the seemingly unrelated things I loved were actually pointing in the same direction. I’ve always been a creative and intensely curious person. Music, film, photography, history, travel, cultural studies — these are lifelong passions. Read More>>
Saige Foss
Finding my purpose was something I struggled with for most of my life. I grew up in New Jersey, spending 13 years in competitive gymnastics — a sport that shaped me, disciplined me, and honestly humbled the hell out of me. Read More>>
Lindsey Eleanor
In my late twenties, I was working in downtown Boston at an asset-management firm. From the outside, everything looked successful—but internally, I felt disconnected. I didn’t know who I was or what direction my life was supposed to take. I ignored a lot of signs that something needed to change, until I ended up in the ER with a life-altering diagnosis. Read More>>
Kate Dodson
I found my purpose completely by accident. I spent the majority of my time in art school thinking it was my purpose to reinvent a style or make huge powerful statements through art or do something that’s never been done before. Thinking on such a grand scale often tripped me up and gave me such an artists’ block and I couldn’t do anything. Read More>>
Patricia Franklin
Since the tender age of 13 years old I have had a deep love with writing. My first writings were actually poetry. I grew up timid not really knowing how to evoke my feelings and found solace in writing poetry. It was my grandmother who supported this gift and who used to tell me, “You’re a writer so write”. Read More>>
Emily Gray
I found my purpose by first losing myself. For most of my life, I didn’t even realize I had mental health. I thought I was my thoughts and that they were an accurate representation of reality, especially the dark ones. When those thoughts told me it would be easier not to be alive, I assumed something was wrong with me or with my circumstances. Read More>>
Giovanni Cordova
I found my purpose naturally and gradually. My passion for music started when I was a kid and eventually grew stronger when I found myself holding multiple musical instruments. First sax, then guitar, which brought me into playing in bands in high school. Read More>>
Seena
I found my purpose by following my own artistic and healing journey. My favorite thing about performing is that I’m able to offer a total vibe change and healing to the audience, using my voice. In addition to this, by working with my own energy field and nervous system, I discovered how powerful somatic and energetic work can be—not just for me, but for everyone. Read More>>
Jasmine Hawkins
I found my purpose the moment I realized that everything I had survived, everything I had endured, and everything I had been entrusted with wasn’t random; it was preparation. For years, I created quietly, served faithfully, and poured into others without fully seeing the bigger picture God was shaping. Read More>>
Erin Beckett
When I started my photography business, I wasn’t necessarily looking to find my purpose–I just wanted to make a career out of being creative. Little did I know that it would lead me to my purpose and my passion. I think the real key to finding your purpose is to try different things. Read More>>
Larsyn Brown
I think purpose is something that keeps evolving, but I finally feel like I have a strong grasp on mine, something I could not have confidently said five years ago. Looking back, I found my purpose by listening to my own heart throughout my career. Read More>>
Alyssa Hawn
I wouldn’t say that I’ve ‘found’ my purpose. It’s more like I’m constantly letting it reveal itself as I go along and stay present. I’ve learned that purpose isn’t a job title or a single thing you do. It’s more like who you are being while you live your life. For me, that’s always evolving. Five years ago, I was in a very different place. Read More>>
Jan Canty, Ph.D.
I didn’t understand my purpose until I was in my late sixties. Before that, I built a career as a psychologist and genuinely enjoyed my work. Read More>>
Krisztian Pivarnyik
I found my purpose through my own journey as an immigrant. When I first came to the United States, I experienced firsthand how complicated, intimidating, and often unfair the immigration system can feel—especially for someone navigating it alone. Read More>>
Rick Therrio
All my life I have enjoyed the work of men & women I thought were brilliant. I mean really deep down, just blown away and impressed by excellent work. It finally occurred to me that this was the very basis of the reason for existence. To enjoy and be inspired by powerful and beautiful work. Read More>>
Denise Bella Vlasis
I found my purpose (and continuing to find my purpose) through aligning with things that light me up. I believe our purpose evolves as we evolve. By staying choosing to naturally do the things in life that light me up- and bring me joy– for no other reason than to listen to my heart– that has always somehow led me to my next purpose. Read More>>
Dr Tracy J Dancy
My purpose wasn’t something I stumbled upon in a moment of clarity—it was something I had to fight my way toward through some of the darkest seasons of my life. After losing my second daughter, I found myself standing in a place where pain felt louder than anything else. But it was in that same place that God began revealing purpose to me. Read More>>
Lynn Tran
When people ask why I do what I do, my answer is simple: everything I pursue has a purpose. Once I set a goal, I commit to it fully—mapping out detailed plans, breaking things down step by step, and taking the process seriously. The bigger the goal, the more intentional and thorough my planning becomes. Read More>>
Kavita Joshi
I discovered my purpose during a season of change. My father passed away when I was still early in my career, but his greatest lesson stayed with me: never let anything, especially being a minority, or ‘the only one in the room’ limit what you imagine for your life. Losing him made me rethink everything. Read More>>
Maribeth Ditmars
My dying teenage son, Chris, gave me my purpose. After a four-year struggle with leukemia, a struggle where Chris rarely complained and often made us laugh, he peacefully accepted his fate and witnessed to us about heaven. ‘Mom and Dad, don’t worry about me. Jesus is coming soon. I am ready to go, and heaven will be awesome. Read More>>
Aviana Vonnette
I found my purpose because I had no other choice. After years of dealing with depression, suicidal ideation, panic attacks, anxiety, and low self-worth I knew I had to get myself out of the dark hole. This journey began with me going to therapy. Read More>>
Amanda Catarzi Hengst
Honestly, I didn’t “find” my purpose the way people talk about it online. I didn’t go on a retreat or journal my way into clarity. My purpose came from pain, the kind you don’t forget. I’m a survivor of sex trafficking, and I’ve also lost five babies to miscarriage. Read More>>
