Finding Your Life Purpose: Three Questions to Ask Yourself

Here are three questions to ask yourself on the road to discovering your life purpose:

The Link Between Fulfillment and Life Purpose
By Lori Radun

Fifteen years into my business career, I began to feel unfulfilled.
Deep in my soul, I had a desire to make a difference in the lives of
other people.  Some people would argue that I was making a
difference.  I contributed to the success of an organization; I
managed people and helped them grow professionally.  The fact is
I was a successful businesswoman, but I wasn’t happy.  I was not
making a difference in the world in a way that was meaningful to
me.

Each of us is uniquely made by God.  We all have special strengths
and talents, and we are all passionate about different things.  We
were gifted with these talents and passions for a reason – to use
them to serve other people.  When you discover what makes you
special, and you tap into the desires of your heart, you are halfway
to fulfilling your life purpose.  When you begin using these gifts
and passions to positively impact other people, then you are living
a life of purpose.  The reward for you is an indescribable feeling of
fulfillment.

It’s not always easy discovering your life purpose.  It takes a lot of
honest self-reflection and a commitment to discovering who you
are and what’s important to you.  It can be a rather elusive
process, especially if soul searching is not something you’re
accustomed to doing.  In order to simplify the discovery, I have
identified three important questions to ask yourself.

What are your gifts and talents?
Take a look at all your strengths.  Some talents you have been
naturally blessed with.  You may be an excellent communicator or
perhaps you’re a gifted musician.  Some of us have the ability to
teach while others are really good at fixing things.  Not only do you
have inborn gifts and talents, but you’ve also developed skills over
the years.  While working for a small company in the business
world, I gained a tremendous amount of experience in how to run
a business.  This was not a skill I was born with; it was something
I learned.  In addition to your natural and learned skills and
talents, you have a set of personality characteristics that serve
you well.  Perhaps you’re caring or funny, persistent or objective.
All of these things make up your package of unique gifts and
talents.

What are you passionate about?
From the time I was 21 years old, I have been passionate about
personal growth.  As a matter of fact, when I look back on my Girl
Scout days, I was even passionate about growing as an individual
then.  I spent a great deal of time and energy filling up my sash
with Girl Scout badges.  It was fun for me to master a new skill.  I
have always loved learning and growing, so it’s not a surprise that
I help others do that today.  I recently met a woman that runs a
doggy day camp.  Her passion is dogs.  My mother’s passion is
beauty.  She loves to make spaces, meals, parties and people
beautiful.  What is your passion?  What can you get lost in for
hours?  What would you be willing to do for free?

What changes would you like to see take place in your family,
community, the nation or the world?
If it wasn’t for all the people using their gifts, talents and passions
to make changes, our world would be a very different place.
Mother Teresa wanted to help the poor.  Martin Luther King Jr.
wanted to see equality between the races.  Danielle Steele wants
women to believe in love.  There are a lot of people out there
making negative changes to our world because it’s done so out of
selfish desire.  What positive changes would you like to see take
place while you’re still alive?  How can you contribute to making
these changes?

Living a life of purpose is about making a positive difference in the
lives of other people.  It’s about using our gifts, talents and
passions to serve other people.  There is not fulfillment in serving
ourselves.  When we give unconditionally, we receive.  The gift we
receive is personal fulfillment.  All of us want to know that who we
are is needed by someone in a meaningful way.  This world needs
you to be you.

About the Author:
Lori Radun is a certified life coach for moms.  To receive her FREE
report “155 Things Moms Can Do to Raise Great Children”, visit her
website at www.momnificent.com