Don't wait for God

The next morning, I woke up in a slight panic that I didn't have a purpose. Is making meaning a passive act? Making meaning is observing and contextualising all that is happening ‘to’ me. Deciding a purpose is a more active participation in crafting my own life. It gives life direction. Having a purpose to life, saving humanity or being really famous for example, however lofty, can give you a future to look forward to.

When I look back at my own life, a lot of things have turned out way better than I would have ever expected. Am I even capable of defining a purpose for myself? Is it ambitious to decide what I want based on how much I know today? Meaning is a discovery, filled with all the coincidences and generosity of life, but purpose is an invention of my mind..

For the first thirty years of my life, I defined my life by what is considered as achievement. Achievement is what society validates, things that everyone else thinks are cool. But sooner or later, you start feeling miserable because you didn’t want those things in the first place. There is no ‘corporate olympics’ for the person who suffers the most doing what they don’t want to do. So now, I try to focus on accomplishment. For me, accomplishment is doing the things that make me feel like a cool person. There is no framework, no logic. If I think it makes sense to do, I trust myself and do it. It can be as simple as learning to swim. It has no economic value but I know my life will be richer if I overcome this fear. So I am at it.

A man is trapped in his house during a flood and prays to God for rescue. His neighbour offers him a ride to safety, but the man refuses, saying, "I am waiting for God to save me". He keeps refusing help till finally the water rises and sweeps him away, and he drowns. When he reaches heaven, he asks God why he didn't save him, and God replies, "I sent you a rowboat, a motorboat, and a helicopter. What more do you want?” The meaning of our life is not defined by others but nor does the meaning reveal itself in big bold lettering across the sky. Meaning emerges everyday when we speak the truth to ourselves, when we learn to trust ourselves and our own little voices. Everyday I remind myself, beyond all that is sexy and reeks of achievement, are answers. And when meaning shows up, listen. Don’t wait for God.

The next morning, I woke up in a slight panic that I didn't have a purpose. Is making meaning a passive act? Making meaning is observing and contextualising all that is happening ‘to’ me. Deciding a purpose is a more active participation in crafting my own life. It gives life direction. Having a purpose to life, saving humanity or being really famous for example, however lofty, can give you a future to look forward to.

When I look back at my own life, a lot of things have turned out way better than I would have ever expected. Am I even capable of defining a purpose for myself? Is it ambitious to decide what I want based on how much I know today? Meaning is a discovery, filled with all the coincidences and generosity of life, but purpose is an invention of my mind..

For the first thirty years of my life, I defined my life by what is considered as achievement. Achievement is what society validates, things that everyone else thinks are cool. But sooner or later, you start feeling miserable because you didn’t want those things in the first place. There is no ‘corporate olympics’ for the person who suffers the most doing what they don’t want to do. So now, I try to focus on accomplishment. For me, accomplishment is doing the things that make me feel like a cool person. There is no framework, no logic. If I think it makes sense to do, I trust myself and do it. It can be as simple as learning to swim. It has no economic value but I know my life will be richer if I overcome this fear. So I am at it.

A man is trapped in his house during a flood and prays to God for rescue. His neighbour offers him a ride to safety, but the man refuses, saying, "I am waiting for God to save me". He keeps refusing help till finally the water rises and sweeps him away, and he drowns. When he reaches heaven, he asks God why he didn't save him, and God replies, "I sent you a rowboat, a motorboat, and a helicopter. What more do you want?” The meaning of our life is not defined by others but nor does the meaning reveal itself in big bold lettering across the sky. Meaning emerges everyday when we speak the truth to ourselves, when we learn to trust ourselves and our own little voices. Everyday I remind myself, beyond all that is sexy and reeks of achievement, are answers. And when meaning shows up, listen. Don’t wait for God.

The next morning, I woke up in a slight panic that I didn't have a purpose. Is making meaning a passive act? Making meaning is observing and contextualising all that is happening ‘to’ me. Deciding a purpose is a more active participation in crafting my own life. It gives life direction. Having a purpose to life, saving humanity or being really famous for example, however lofty, can give you a future to look forward to.

When I look back at my own life, a lot of things have turned out way better than I would have ever expected. Am I even capable of defining a purpose for myself? Is it ambitious to decide what I want based on how much I know today? Meaning is a discovery, filled with all the coincidences and generosity of life, but purpose is an invention of my mind..

For the first thirty years of my life, I defined my life by what is considered as achievement. Achievement is what society validates, things that everyone else thinks are cool. But sooner or later, you start feeling miserable because you didn’t want those things in the first place. There is no ‘corporate olympics’ for the person who suffers the most doing what they don’t want to do. So now, I try to focus on accomplishment. For me, accomplishment is doing the things that make me feel like a cool person. There is no framework, no logic. If I think it makes sense to do, I trust myself and do it. It can be as simple as learning to swim. It has no economic value but I know my life will be richer if I overcome this fear. So I am at it.

A man is trapped in his house during a flood and prays to God for rescue. His neighbour offers him a ride to safety, but the man refuses, saying, "I am waiting for God to save me". He keeps refusing help till finally the water rises and sweeps him away, and he drowns. When he reaches heaven, he asks God why he didn't save him, and God replies, "I sent you a rowboat, a motorboat, and a helicopter. What more do you want?” The meaning of our life is not defined by others but nor does the meaning reveal itself in big bold lettering across the sky. Meaning emerges everyday when we speak the truth to ourselves, when we learn to trust ourselves and our own little voices. Everyday I remind myself, beyond all that is sexy and reeks of achievement, are answers. And when meaning shows up, listen. Don’t wait for God.

The next morning, I woke up in a slight panic that I didn't have a purpose. Is making meaning a passive act? Making meaning is observing and contextualising all that is happening ‘to’ me. Deciding a purpose is a more active participation in crafting my own life. It gives life direction. Having a purpose to life, saving humanity or being really famous for example, however lofty, can give you a future to look forward to.

When I look back at my own life, a lot of things have turned out way better than I would have ever expected. Am I even capable of defining a purpose for myself? Is it ambitious to decide what I want based on how much I know today? Meaning is a discovery, filled with all the coincidences and generosity of life, but purpose is an invention of my mind..

For the first thirty years of my life, I defined my life by what is considered as achievement. Achievement is what society validates, things that everyone else thinks are cool. But sooner or later, you start feeling miserable because you didn’t want those things in the first place. There is no ‘corporate olympics’ for the person who suffers the most doing what they don’t want to do. So now, I try to focus on accomplishment. For me, accomplishment is doing the things that make me feel like a cool person. There is no framework, no logic. If I think it makes sense to do, I trust myself and do it. It can be as simple as learning to swim. It has no economic value but I know my life will be richer if I overcome this fear. So I am at it.

A man is trapped in his house during a flood and prays to God for rescue. His neighbour offers him a ride to safety, but the man refuses, saying, "I am waiting for God to save me". He keeps refusing help till finally the water rises and sweeps him away, and he drowns. When he reaches heaven, he asks God why he didn't save him, and God replies, "I sent you a rowboat, a motorboat, and a helicopter. What more do you want?” The meaning of our life is not defined by others but nor does the meaning reveal itself in big bold lettering across the sky. Meaning emerges everyday when we speak the truth to ourselves, when we learn to trust ourselves and our own little voices. Everyday I remind myself, beyond all that is sexy and reeks of achievement, are answers. And when meaning shows up, listen. Don’t wait for God.