The Fates Guide Those Who Go Willingly--All Others they Drag
Roman Philosopher, Seneca the Younger (5 BC-65 AD) wrote "Fate leads the willing and drags along the reluctant." Not much has changed through the ages, except perhaps the faces.
If The Fates rounded up the usual dragging suspects, would you be among them? Are you one for digging your heels in and resisting the unfolding of your life or are you a willing participant in the making of your life?
Purpose and Passion
"If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable." Lucius Annaeus Seneca
How do you feel about your life at this moment? Do you feel like life is passing you by while you remain a passive passenger? If so, get passionate about adding value and meaning to your life now by giving it purpose--and start living a purposeful life.
Even if your life had purpose and passion in the past, if you feel lackluster about it now you're drifting--a clear sign it's time to consciously re-purpose your life and get it back on a passionate track.
Which Do You Choose--An Inspired Life or One Mired in Minutia?
"In the absence of clearly defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily trivia until ultimately we become enslaved by it." Robert Heinlein
As Heinlein says, without a clear vision for engaging in your life, it is easy to get caught up in the minutia of the daily mundane tasks that suck the energy right out of you. After a while, your life becomes defined by going to work, doing the laundry, going to the grocery store, or picking up the kids from school.
Without putting your life in the context of an inspired, purposeful life, all those daily activities begin to feel like merely putting one foot in front of the other in a monotonous march from one day to the next.
Stop living a life of minutia and start living an inspired, purposeful one. As Tom Thiss says, "Having a purpose is the difference between making a living and making a life."
Your Passionate Purpose is Found in the Giving, not the Getting
"From what we get, we can make a living. What we give, however, makes a life." Arthur Ashe
You want to make a positive impact in the world around you, not just make a living. And as Arthur Ashe says, the key to making an inspired, purpose-filled life is to give of yourself to others and the world around you.
Look for ways to get involved in things that matter to you. Don't be afraid to try things out. Be on a quest to get involved in activities that make you feel good. You'll know it when you find activities that provide meaning.
Look for ways to find meaning in the mundane. If you must do something--like go to a boring job to pay the bills--find a way to enjoy it by articulating how it fits into your greater life purpose. How are you actively giving of yourself in this mundane activity? How are you contributing to your life purpose?
Look for activities that are not contributing to your wellbeing you could give up. When you look at your free or down time, what are you doing with it that is un-inspiring--watching TV, playing video games, nothing? If you were to give up the time doing the un-inspired, what meaningful activities could you do instead?
Look for ways to give. What do you have to give and share with the world? What is your purpose? We are all driven to seek our purpose in life. Find yours--and get involved.
"I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day." E.B. White
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