THIS Is The 1st Step In Awakening Your Inner Muse
Wondering WHY you are here...your life purpose, it's a common question. Even if you've never asked that question out loud. When thinking about purpose, the first thing that comes to mind for many is your career. What am I supposed to do with my life?
But really, your purpose doesn't necessarily have to be tied to your career at all. It may be, but it's not required.
There are a lot of considerations people look to when deciding on a job or their purpose (remember: they aren't one and the same. We don't live to work). But the most overlooked thing is the first step we'll talk about here:
Who are you?
Without discovering your true, authentic self, you can find yourself pursuing a life that is not aligned, leaving you feeling unfulfilled...like something is missing.
Your authentic self is the part of you that has always been. From the moment you’re born, those who love you and those who know nothing about you are teaching you.
Teaching you how to assimilate.
How to be accepted.
Through their words. Language.
Through their action.
Through their intentions.
But finding the truth…your truth, it has to be intentional. Or else, the authentic self that was born into this world on day one will slowly and continually fade away.
The true self spans your physical, emotional, and mental states. It's who you are.
How would you describe yourself? In order to identify who I am, for instance, I might say, "I'm Elle, daughter of Sharon, single, and from a suburb outside of Cleveland."
But what if my Mom continued with her idea of naming me Brianna, and I married that guy from high school, and I grew up in Alabama instead? Of course, my life experiences would be different and maybe even my societal conditioning would have changed, but at my core, my true authentic self would still be the same.
It's hard to put into words, but there's something about you that never changes. At your core, beyond the conditioning, you are who you are.
But who are you?
If you don’t take the time, throughout life you can go around not knowing. Maybe even misunderstanding yourself because you've put on layers of "should be."
As long as you're living your life in accordance with who you really are, you have the opportunity to experience joy, peace, satisfaction, and success. Having a life that doesn't resonate with your inner self will make you feel as if something is missing. When you're not acknowledging and honoring your authentic self, no amount of achievement, money, or recognition will matter.
Try these suggestions to find out who you really are and what your life's purpose is:
If you could accomplish ANYTHING in your life, what would it be? For you, maybe it's finally hitting a billion dollars or winning a Nobel Peace Prize? Writing a New York Times best-selling book or starting a family. What does the ultimate success mean for you?
If money was no object and you had complete time freedom, what would you do with your time?
What are you doing when you're in your flow state? These tend to be things you are good at AND enjoy doing.
Think back to your childhood. What did you love to do then that you still love now? Riding your bike until the street lights came on, watching shows on Nickelodeon, pizza, and naps in the afternoon might've been your thing. Maybe all of the above! But don't stop there. You might have always been drawn to creativity, exploration, and the opportunity to serve others in your own way. The point is to think about the characteristics that have always been there for you, even when you weren't actively nourishing them.
These are just some thought starters to help you go deep. And to add to self discovery, one of my other favorite tools is human design because it gives language to who you really are, outside of any well-meaning teaching from society (conditioning). Like I mentioned, at your core, you are who you are. And it's up to you to discover and embrace what you know to be true.
Whatever it is that makes you truly unique, please know that you are magical. It's up to you to acknowledge and honor it. Run with what you're good at and what you enjoy, rather than focus on what you think needs to be fixed. Most importantly, I want everyone to tap into their own magic...because the world needs it.