Don’t let what you can’t do interfere with what you can do ~ John Wooden
I always find it fascinating to read about defining moments in someone’s life. Take, for example, an article in the Washington Post this week. One of the city’s top lawyers quit a well-known legal firm after 28 years to start up his own company giving speeches to investors and financial firms on how Washington’s laws and regulations affect their investments.
As the expert tax lawyer for the sports industry, not only did he make a substantial income, but he had access to the best sports tickets, attended all-star games, playoffs and Super Bowls and schmoozed with the “Who’s Who” in the field. He appeared to be living a great life. What more could he want?
What he wasn’t getting, however, was fulfillment. He got to a point in his life when, in his words, “my two choices were to sit at my desk and do the same thing for the next 15 years. Or I could go out and do something different.” He did something different! Was it a tough choice? Yes, but the overwhelming need to follow that inner spark, that passion, was a driving force to make the change.
Wouldn’t it be great if you had something to get you that motivated and excited? You can … by finding and following your passion. If you’d like to learn more, go to http://budurl.com/h7zj
In the words of Thoreau, “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” Make this summer the time you find something new to be passionate about. Let your “can do” take the driver’s seat so that any “can’t do” gets left in the dust!
True Joy of Life 
This is the true joy of life.
The being used for a purpose
Recognized by yourself as a mighty one.
The being a force of nature
Instead of a feverish, selfish
True Joy of Life
This is the true joy of life.
The being used for a purpose
Recognized by yourself as a mighty one.
The being a force of nature
Instead of a feverish, selfish
Little clod of ailments and grievances
Complaining that the world will not
Devote itself to making you happy.
I am of the opinion that my life
Belongs to the whole community
And as long as I live,
It is my privilege to do for it
Whatever I can.
I want to be thoroughly
Used up when I die,
For the harder I work the more I live.
I rejoice in life for its own sake.
Life is no brief candle to me.
It is a sort of splendid torch
Which I’ve got hold of
For the moment
And I want to make it burn
As brightly as possible before
Handing it on to future generations
— George Bernard Shaw
Is your life a tiny flicker, barely giving out a glimmer of light? Do you feel used up without any sort of spark left to keep you going? When was the last time you felt the burning heat of a “splendid torch?” If your answers are “Yes”, “Yes” and “I can’t remember”, then you probably aren’t living a life focused on those things that are important to you.
When you are living a life fueled by your own passions, you feel alive, motivated and filled with enthusiasm. You are driven to experience that “splendid torch” again and again. Living someone else’s life (for example, “I’m a lawyer because it’s what my parents wanted”) or living a mediocre existence because you are afraid to live the one you secretly desire will never light the torch, at least not for any length of time.
If you don’t know what sets your torch alight, what your purpose is, I can help you find the spark that will ultimately turn into a roaring blaze. Isn’t it time?
The first step in living a life of purpose is to get clear on those things which are of importance to you. It is, however, one thing to clarify your passions and quite another to adopt a behavior that is in accordance with them on a daily basis. We all have an amazing capacity to deceive ourselves.
Facing the truth about the disparity between who you want to be and who you really are can be difficult. We resort to all sorts of ways of burying any awareness of ourselves that is upsetting or hurtful. But until you make a choice to “walk through the fog”, there is no beginning point for change.
Psychiatrist R.D. Laing put this into words in the following way –
The range of what we think and do
Is limited by what we fail to notice
And because we fail to notice
That we fail to notice
There is little we can do
To change
Until we notice
How failing to notice
Shapes our thoughts and deeds
What are you failing to notice in your life?
Mid-life is a time of reflection, changing goals and reorganizing priorities. It’s a time of letting go of habits, behaviors and thinking patterns that no longer serve you and figuring out what legacy you want to leave behind. It’s about going from a “me” to a “we” life.
Your accomplishments during the first half of your life were no doubt worthy goals but will they last? Are they what you want to be known for when you reach that last part of your life? A “no” answer is the first step in the process of clarifying what is truly important to you at this stage of the game.
One way of defining your legacy to the world is to imagine that you are at your 100th birthday celebration. Your family, friends and neighbors have come to celebrate this momentous occasion with you. The person who is closest to you is going read a speech to the audience. This speech is about YOU, about all that you have accomplished; how you have made the world a better place for the next generation; all the ways you have been of service to others. YOU are going to write that speech yourself.
Visualize how you have made a difference in the lives of those closest to you, acquaintances, friends, family, colleagues and the world in general. What have you given, what have you created and how does it make you feel? Now take pen and paper and start writing.
This is just one of the steps in discovering your purpose, your passion, why you were put on this earth. If you would like to gain more insight into what’s missing in your life, why you’re not waking up to greet each day with enthusiasm and joy and why you are in a rut, please email me via my website – http://www.blueprints4change.com
Passion & Purpose | admin | 
June 13, 2010 12:13 pm | 
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