Share this
In life, you never know what’s coming next, so you can’t really figure out your entire future. That being said, there are things you can do to help, influence the outcome of your life. Chances are, you have no clue what you want to do. It’s a struggle that most people go through at some point in life. So when people ask, “What should I do with my life?” or “What is my life purpose?” what they’re actually asking is: “What am I able to do with my time that’s important?”
Here are 8 ways that can help you figure it out…
Step Out Of your Comfort zone
We all know that life can get uncomfortable from time to time but the best things in life are often hard. Learning is tough, building something great is tough, and a marriage may be hard, but they are all amazing things. Sometimes you don’t have enough money to do the things you want to, or perhaps whatever you’re pursuing requires that you live with some discomfort. For example, you get a great job offer in a foreign country. Perhaps you don’t even speak the language! You’ll need to quit the comforts in your life to pursue this opportunity – including your home, your family, and your friends. It will be tough initially, but you’ll adjust in time. You see, if you get used to a little discomfort, you can do anything. So, how do you get good at this? Well, you have to go out of your comfort zone and do things that are uncomfortable and hard on purpose. But you need to start with small steps.
Ask Yourself Questions. Take some time out.
Do something relaxing… Go for a walk in the park or somewhere tranquil. Then ask yourself big questions. Learn about yourself. Write down things that interest you… things you could see yourself doing if time and money were no object. Really imagine yourself doing those things.
Think About Where You’ll Be in Five Years
Where do you see yourself in 5 years? It’s a difficult question to answer, but just trying to answer the question is all you need to do. And while you won’t be able to come up with a concrete answer, it’s important because it will give you an idea of what you want to pursue.
For instance, you may want to become a family nurse practitioner right now but choose to become a leader of nurses in three or four years’ time. You won’t know this until that time. Therefore, you still take the master’s course at Spalding University Online, and then if you do realize that you would prefer to teach and lead, simply switch up the direction of your five-year plan. Don’t pursue something just because it was part of your plan. You may be able to continue at the same university but take the doctorate right after you graduate with your master’s and soon be on your way to achieving your end goal. The key thing is that you are happy with where you end up. It doesn’t matter if it takes you longer than five years. As long as you end up in a position you love, it will be the right thing for you.
More often than not, where you see yourself is not where you’ll end up but at least you will have developed new skills and strategies. Also, picking a lifestyle to pursue instead of a job title can assist you to focus on what you’re really interested in.
Learn More About Your Mind
Most people don’t realize this or give it much thought, but fears control them. They don’t recognize distractions and find it hard to stray from them. It’s a real challenge to change mental habits because you aren’t always aware of what’s going on inside your head. You need to learn about how your mind works and you will become much better at managing all of this. One of the best ways to do this is through meditation and maintaining a journal. With meditation, you can relax and concentrate on your thoughts and by writing regularly in a journal, you reflect on what you’ve been doing in life and what you have learned.
Explore to Find Your Passion
Passion is the result of an action and not the cause of it. Discovering what you’re passionate about is a trial-and-error process and none of us know how we feel about an activity until we actually try it. Let’s suppose that you’re forced to try something new, anything. What would it be? Would you sign up for a piano class? Would you sign up for a computer course? Perhaps you hate computers now, but then you sign up for a course and during that course, you discover an interest in web design.
And that’s how passion is born. So, make a shortlist of things you might be interested in, and then go out and try them!
Volunteer or Shadow Someone
Once you’ve found something you’re interested in, be it a job or hobby, volunteer or job shadow to see if it’s something you really want to pursue. Just dreaming about something won’t get you far, so it’s important that you actually go out and get your hands dirty. Before you give up your current life to pursue a dream, make sure you research and read a lot from people who have first-hand experience. This will help you because it gives a good insight into others who have been there.
Overcome Distraction and Procrastination
Without overcoming distraction and procrastination, you won’t be able to move forward. Even if you’ve started pursuing something and you’re good at dealing with uncertainty and discomfort, you won’t get far if you’re too busy with social media or watching TV. Just remember this: Distraction and procrastination are ways of avoiding discomfort. But if you get good at discomfort, you’ll be ahead of most people.
Answer the Door
If you never answer opportunity knocking, you miss out. You need to take opportunities when they are presented to you. It may not always seem like the right time, but it doesn’t matter. Opportunities just randomly happen and if you don’t answer when it knocks, you might miss a great opportunity or even a life-changing one. So next time you hear that knock, just answer!
“When your Purpose And Passion are greater than your fears and excuses, you will find a way.”
The important thing to remember while trying to figure out what to do in life is to make decisions and try things. Even if they don’t turn out to be what you expected, at the end of your life, you won’t regret trying things and failing, but you will regret not trying at all.
