The Importance of Having a Purpose in Life

“Having a purpose is the difference between making a living and making a life.”

-Tom Thiss

At one point or the other, you are sure to come across the term, ‘Life Purpose.’ You will hear people talking about what they think the purpose of their life is, or how they are still looking for the purpose of their life. This question is closely bound to existential crises that many people face from time to time.

Having a purpose in life isn’t always about the greater good, about some spiritual thing, or something bigger than you. It is more about yourself, your calling, something that pushes you to keep moving in the direction of what you desire the most. When we think of anything related to purpose, cause, and effect – Buddha’s teachings are one of the first things that come to mind.

Buddha’s teachings were based on the Law of Cause and Effect- the Theory of Karma. Buddha preached that every good action has positive effects on an individual’s life and every wrong thought, word or dead has negative consequences. 

Karma. What goes around comes back around. How many times have you heard this?

Each one of us has come into this world with a purpose is something that you will hear a lot – from people who have actually found it and from people who are pretending to fit in. You will get a lot of advice from all directions. 

We are all here to observe, to learn, to grow and then we return home. Every effect has a cause. Being human is an effect. So it must have a cause. Each life has a different cause. We all have different stories and different endings. But the ultimate purpose of each living being on this planet is happiness. We live to be happy. 

If you don’t think that, then close your eyes and think about what you truly want. Now, dissect it, think about having what you. Think about how it will make you feel. The underlying reason is satisfaction and happiness for everything. It might come in different forms, but at the end, it is the same.

“Good deeds bring good results. Bad deeds bring bad results. Your own actions bring your own results,” – this is what Karma basically entails. This is what leads you to find your purpose in life. When you know what you are chasing after, deciding the path becomes easier. 

You aren’t fishing in the dark with no destination in sight. Knowing what you have to achieve, knowing what your calling is even if it doesn’t fit the mould of the society – is enough to push you to keep moving. It is the encouragement you need to get out of bed every morning to achieve what you want.

“I believe purpose is something for which one is responsible; it’s not just divinely assigned.”

-Michael J. Fox

We are always blaming everyone else for our mistakes and failure. But all these are excuses to hide our own deeds. All of our fate at this moment has been brought on by what we have worked for. It is our own actions not those of others at all times. When one door opens, it doesn’t stop there, it opens multiple others. Every action causes a chain reaction – domino effect if you may.

If we don’t have a person to blame our fate, we blame our bad luck. We say misfortune stuck us down. But the truth is our current situation is a direct or indirect effect of our past actions. We are affected by our own causes, and no one else’s. Our actions and our intentions. We may try to camouflage his intentions in his otherwise noble deeds, but at some point, all this leads back to us. 

“If you organize your life around your passion, you can turn your passion into your story and then turn your story into something bigger―something that matters.”

-Blake Mycoskie

Sometimes you are stuck in miserable situations and wonder if the universe is conspiring to bring you down. There are two ways to go about it – either you sit and complain about it for the rest of your life or you accept your circumstances and work hard to change your conditions. 

Live your life to the fullest, but take responsibility for your actions. Improve your lifestyle. Have healthy habits. Developing your self is the first step to learning your purpose in life and doing it justice. People who know how to use time wisely will make it their aim to spend time on activities that help them advance on their purpose in life, and people who know what the purpose is will know not to waste time chasing things that don’t matter.

“There is no greater gift you can give or receive than to honor your calling. It’s why you were born. And how you become most truly alive.”

-Oprah Winfrey