Do you believe that having a purpose in life is important?
We do, and our experience has taught us that having a purpose contributes a
great deal to the quality of our lives. Not only that, having a purpose can
actually prolong your life.
Several years ago, a study done by Harvard researchers followed
two groups of patients in a convalescent home. Members of one group were asked
to care for a potted plant during that time. Members of the other group had no
such purpose. Those who were plant caretakers lived, on average, twice as long
as the others did. You see, a sense of purpose fosters hope, self-motivation
and positive feelings about oneself and others.
Viktor Frankl, in his book Man's Search For Meaning found
this same result during his time in Nazi concentration camps during WWII.
Purpose, or goals if you will, provided the will to live.
Now it is important to remember that, if it’s going to be
truly meaningful, your life’s purpose must be something that is chosen freely
by you, not something that is chosen for you. And it may have nothing whatever
to do with what you do for a living, although, if it does that would be ideal.
Have you thought about what your purpose is? Have you tried
to put it into words? If not, take the time to do so, and then use that purpose
as a compass to guide your activities. You will be surprised at how much energy
and clarity you’ll feel.
And by the way, age has nothing to do with finding purpose
in your life. And if you are wondering when you can start – today will do!
