Latest / Hardiness with Dr Paul Taylor / Mojo Monday - Purpose Isn't a Feeling, It's an Action with Carly Taylor

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Mojo Monday - Purpose Isn't a Feeling, It's an Action with Carly Taylor · Hardiness with Dr Paul Taylor

• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Hi, everybody, It's Carly Talley here for this week's Mojo Monday.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: So have you ever stopped to think about what it
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: truly means to live a life of meaning and purpose?
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: What would that life look like for you? In our
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: Western culture, we often equate finding meaning and purpose with
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: the big things, our goals, our dreams, and what we're
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: striving for, and purpose can become this kind of abstract idea,
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: something we need to search for, and it's usually tied
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: up in our work. So if we don't find meaning
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: in our work or our job, it's easy to feel
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: unfulfilled and we can end up asking ourselves what's the point?
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: Or is or is this what my life has become?
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: And I've definitely been there. I've spent a lot of
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: my life searching for something that would bring me a
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: sense of purpose or fulfillment. And I guess through that
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: searching and a lot of study and self reflection, I
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: have a different view of life now than I have
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: done in the past. But I do know that feeling
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: of being stuck within the search, if that makes sense.
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: So what if we shift our perspective for a moment,
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: and this is what has really helped me So instead
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: of thinking about your entire life and the big purpose,
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: ask yourself what would a meaningful, purposeful day look like today?
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: So if you got to the end of today and
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: you could reflect back and say, my life today was
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: filled with meaning and purpose, what would that actually look like?
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: So this question might be easy for some or it
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: might feel hard to answer, depending on where your mind
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: is at. When we're consumed by anxiety and overwhelm and stress,
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: our sense of purpose can become really clouded. But here's
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: the key, I said, a sense of purpose. If we're
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: waiting for the right environment, the right time, or the
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: right feeling to finally experience purpose, we might end up
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: waiting for a very long time. So Japanese psychiatrist Shoma
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: Marita made a distinction between sensing a purpose and serving
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: a purpose. So, as Marita said, you don't need to
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: feel purposeful to live purposefully. So I'll just repeat that,
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: you don't need to feel purposeful to live purposely. So
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: purpose isn't a feeling that we wait for, it's an
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: action that we choose. So to find meaning in everyday life,
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: you have to take action. Instead of focusing solely on
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: the big goal. You can shift your focus to what
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: you need to do today, So you can't reach the
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: top of the ladder without climbing each rung, and every
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: rung of the ladder holds meaning and purpose. It's the
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: small things that we do every day that are often
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: where we can find our sense of purpose. Doctor Brian
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: Ogawa reminds us that we do not wait for purpose.
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: Purpose waits for us. So if you're looking for purpose today,
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: start by opening your awareness to everything that you do
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: and do it well. Whatever the task, however small, approach
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: it with purpose and intention. A sense of purpose will
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: then naturally flow on. And why not to get too
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: distracted by the thoughts of the future, because when you do,
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: you risk missing the meaning that's right here, right now.
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: It's this delicate balance between striving for how you want
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: things to be how you want to be, and accepting
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: what is right now. So feel empowered by your choices
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: and actions in the present moment. You'll find purpose in
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: the small everyday tasks when you approach them with focus
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: and care. So things like washing clothes, doing the dishes,
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: making lunches, or driving the kids to school can feel boring,
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: or feel like a hassle, or just something that you
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: have to do. But these are all purposeful actions. So
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: if you're fully present, consciously aware of why you're doing
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: these tasks, you'll find meaning in them. If you're distracted,
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: if you're seeing these tasks as obstacles, you'll miss out
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: on the fulfillment that comes from them. These small, essential
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: life things that keep our lives moving forward. And in relationships,
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: we find purpose by consciously connecting with others, even in
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: small ways. So maybe sending a text or calling somebody
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: because you're thinking of them. You know that can bring
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: meaning and purpose because it's these simple acts that not
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: only bring joy to others, but also to you. So
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: one of the challenges is if you are in a
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: job that you really don't like, and finding purpose can
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: be very challenging, but it's still possible if you shift
• 5:38
  Speaker 1: your focus and your perspective. So here's some ways to
• 5:41
  Speaker 1: find purpose in a job that doesn't that you're not enjoying.
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: So even in a job you don't enjoy, just showing
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: up and giving your best effort is a purposeful action.
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: Being fully present and committed to the quality of your work,
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: no matter how you feel about what you're doing, is meaningful.
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: You can focus on what you can learn on the job.
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: So maybe you're improving your communication, or your time management,
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: or your problem solving skills, or even perhaps if you're
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: working on your emotional kind of response to things, so
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: you could work on responding differently to stressful situations or
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: to difficult people. Even in the tough jobs, there's always
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: an opportunity for both professional and personal growth, and purpose
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: at work can come from supporting your colleagues or your customers,
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: you know something. Sometimes just making someone's day a little
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: bit better can make your work feel more meaningful. And
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: giving to others is a very powerful source of purpose.
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: And even if your role feels small, consider how it
• 6:52
  Speaker 1: fits into the bigger picture of the company or the
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: industry that you're in. You know, your work contributes to
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: something larger, even if it's not directly aligned with your passions. Now,
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: I was thinking about the frontline workers during the COVID lockdowns,
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: and the people that were going to work every day
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: in the supermarkets, the cleaners, the truck drivers that were
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: making sure that we could get food. They kept the
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: world moving, They kept us moving, and many found this
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: renewed sense of purpose in their roles. So by opening
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: up to these new perspectives and focusing on doing the
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: small things well, you can find purpose even in the
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: most difficult job settings. So today, rather than getting lost
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: in thoughts of what could be or what should be,
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: focus on the small things in front of you, do
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: them well and trust that purpose will follow. So have
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: a great week everyone. I hope it is full of
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: meaning and purpose, and I will catch you next week.