The 5 Paradoxes of Purpose

Most women I encounter today are searching to find more meaning in the work they do. They are searching to find their reasons why. However, many are led down the wrong path. They are led down the wrong path because they do not know about the 5 Paradoxes of Purpose. These paradoxes must be maneuvered properly if you are going to find the “right” purpose-driven endeavor.

Here are The 5 Paradoxes of Purpose you must know:

Paradox 1.

You cannot follow just any passion to find your purpose for two reasons:

one, not all passions indicate talent and;

two, not all passions are created equal in terms of what you are best suited for.

This is because “Passion,” by definition means, “a strong and barely controlled emotion.” You need to understand your signature emotional makeup BEFORE you decide to follow a specific passion as you will be better suited for certain passions over others.

Paradox 2.

You cannot follow all your talents to find your purpose for two reasons: one, not all talents are passions, and two, not all talents are desired or needed by the public. If there isn’t a hot demand for the talent you possess, you will not be able to sustain yourself and if you can’t sustain yourself you can’t help others.

I see a lot of women make this mistake…

I also see a lot of college students make this mistake. They follow their talents (the subjects, and industries that come naturally to them), and then 10 years down the road find out that although they were naturally “gifted” in this area they don’t actually have a real passion for the industry they are working in or the work they are doing.

This is a slippery slope as clearly, you must have natural talent in the work that you choose. The key is choosing the right COMBINATION of talents that will sustain you over a period of time.

This requires that you know both your needs and your motivators. I find that many women can rattle off what motivates them, but fall short in knowing what they need to thrive at their best. If you don’t meet your needs, your stress behaviors will take over squashing your ability to do your best work.

Paradox 3.

You must focus on your weaknesses. Now I know this sounds crazy but here’s the thing, we all have them! We all have weaknesses (or what I call “Impediment to success”) which do a great job of standing in our way of creating everything we want.

If you don’t know your impediments you can’t do anything about them, and if they are left to their own devices, they will succeed at keeping you down.

I am talking about…

1 – your limiting beliefs
2 – your paralyzing conditions
3 – your saboteurs and your
4 – competing intentions.

You must understand what these are and learn to navigate around them or kick them to the curb.
It’s not good enough to find your purpose if you can’t fulfill that purpose due to your unconscious impediments holding you back.

Paradox 4.

You must not attempt to fit in. You are unique. There is no one like you. That’s a good thing. That’s by design. If you try to find your purpose without fully understanding what sets you apart from the norm, you are doing yourself an injustice.

Your purpose is just as unique as you are, therefore you will not find your purpose if you are trying to be something you are not or trying to be someone you are not…meaning copying another person’s business or life purpose.

Jody Foster said, “normal is not something to aspire to, it’s something to get away from.” So true are those words especially when searching for your purpose.

Paradox 5.

You cannot do this alone. I know that finding your purpose seems like an inside job but here’s the paradox: You cannot see what’s right in front of your face.

There is a bit of southern folk wisdom that says, “you can’t read the label while you’re sitting inside the jar.” Albert Einstein said something similar, “you cannot solve a problem at the level in which it was created.”

Finding and fulfilling a life-purpose or a purpose-driven career is not an easy task. If it were, more people would be living their purpose, instead of the 75% of our working population who are unsatisfied with the work they do. This continues to be a major life issue for most.

That is because seeing yourself objectively is difficult if not impossible. In addition, you need help from those who know what to look for, and you need a method to help you find, sort, and file all the unique attributes that make you, YOU! And then you need help knowing where to point those attributes toward.

You also need help:

– knowing which passions to follow and which to avoid.
– understanding your emotional makeup
– knowing how to combine your natural talents in a way that people will both want and pay you for.
– understanding your impediments to success

And,

– You need help knowing what differentiates you most – what makes you unique from the social norm. Where you outshine and outperform others.

In other words, you need help knowing what your “Unique Creative Potential” is.