Written by: Vince Morales, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Mark Twain was credited with saying, "The two most important days in your life are the day you are born, and the day you find out why." He meant that finding your purpose in life is significant… and it’s the only way to true happiness and inner peace. It’s the difference between living and existing.
You can discover your purpose by asking yourself questions about what you want in life and what brings you joy. You’ll have to look at your innate talents and how you can monetize them. This is a process of self-discovery… but that’s not what this article is about. No, this article assumes that you’ve found your purpose and you’re living your authentic life.
But how do you know for sure that you are living your purpose? That’s precisely what this article is about – recognizing the signs of a purpose-driven life.
1. You were born to do it.
It doesn’t matter what your innate talents/skills are. It could be writing, painting, singing, playing the piano, or even rock climbing. The common denominator is that you will feel like you were born to do this activity.
The skills come to you naturally… and you’ll see much faster improvement with practice than someone not born to do what you do. For example, if you’re inherently good at painting, you’ll become great at it with good instruction and practice.
However, someone who merely treats it as a passing interest may become good but never see as much progress as you (given the same instruction and practice). You excel by leaps and bounds, but they progress incrementally. This is one of the most obvious signs.
2. Everything changes internally, even if nothing outwardly changes.
Initially, when you discover your purpose, nothing may have changed on the outside. You may have the same job, income, friends, and so on.
However, internally, everything would have changed. You feel much better and are less prone to illness. You have pep in your step, and you don’t even know why.
Your energy levels increase, and so does your happiness level. You can’t wait to wake up every morning and start your day. Life begins to have new promises, and you have plans for bigger things. The job you’re currently working at (but detest) is now just a stepping stone for you. You know in your bones that life will get a lot grander.
3. Money starts flowing in.
As time passes and you discover how to monetize your innate skills, you’ll see your income increase exponentially. While earning a decent income may have been a struggle before, now you’re doing it efficiently and making much more.
In some cases, you may earn less than what you made at your previous job, but you’re happier and more fulfilled. You no longer have poor spending habits because buying expensive items is no longer a form of therapy.
4. You make a difference.
Inevitably, you’ll notice that once you find your purpose and focus on it, your efforts will not only yield fruit for you, but your work will also positively impact others’ lives. Generally, you’ll be creating products that benefit others, or you’ll be providing services that improve people’s well-being. Even if you’re volunteering for a non-profit organization and that’s your purpose, others will still benefit from your efforts.
5. Your ‘people’ find you.
You may have found that you could not find people who were on the same page as you in the past. Even in a group, you may have felt like an outsider who couldn’t gel with the rest. You may have tried to conform to belong, but it would have felt awkward. Others with similar interests will somehow be drawn to you when you're on purpose. That’s just the way the universe works. New mentors may appear in your life to guide you and help you forward in your journey. You’ll finally feel like you belong.
6. Everything starts to add up.
Regardless of what mistakes you made in the past or your bad experiences, once you’ve found your purpose, you’ll discover that most of what happened in the past were just lessons meant to teach you or strengthen your resolve to reach your ultimate destination. Your negative experiences are the foundation upon which you’ll build your purpose-driven life, and there’s no way but up for you now.
7. It’s no longer about the money.
Most people who have discovered their purpose in life will usually earn an income to live comfortably. Even those who are on a lower income level will still get by. What doesn’t change, though, is that even if they had all the money in the world, they wouldn’t stop doing what they were doing now. They know their purpose, and it’s a joy to do it.
This is the reason why wealthy actors carry on making movies even when they have more money than they can spend in one lifetime. It’s why bestselling authors keep writing, why successful artists keep performing, and so on. They have found their life-calling, and it’s the purpose that keeps them going.
8. You’re truly at peace with yourself.
Happiness is fleeting. It comes and goes. Whether you have a purpose or not, life will have challenges. You suddenly do not get an easy life after becoming because you discover your purpose. That’s not how purpose works. Finding purpose is about doing what makes you fulfilled – and with that, you’ll get inner peace even if the world around you seems to be falling apart. You’ll know that things will get better, and you’ll stay on track. You’ll be at peace with yourself. This elusive feeling of peace will be yours once you’re on purpose.
Look out for these eight signs in your life, and if you see them, you’ll know that you’re on the path you were meant to be on. Greatness will be yours in time to come.
“When you walk with purpose, you collide with destiny.” – Bertice Berry
Vince Morales, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Vince Morales is a mindset, self-image, and resilience coach. In addition, he is skilled in leadership consultation and development. From April 2016 to June 2017, Vince was a homeless veteran in San Diego, CA. While homeless he made a powerful decision to change his thinking and mindset launching into life coaching. He developed a niche for resilience and mindset coaching. The growth of his business ultimately led to the end of his homelessness. Vince is Founder of Validus Coaching & Consulting, formerly Zoe Transformation. His story has been featured in online articles and online news outlets all over the U.S. He is a certified John Maxwell Team Coach, Trainer, & Speaker as well as a motivational speaker. In 2021, Vince earned his Master's degree in Psychology of Leadership from Penn State University and is currently a doctoral student pursuing a Ph.D. in Performance Psychology. He is a 2020 inductee in The National Society of Leadership and Success.
