Taking the First Step Towards a Personal Destiny
I believe that we are alive to connect with the things that we care about. By connecting with the things that we care about, we activate a personal destiny—a destiny that brings purpose and also makes the world a better place.
Most people today are not taught to connect with themselves or the things they care about. Instead, they are trained to work a job or build a career in something that doesn’t interest them, in exchange for a sense of security and stability that may not really exist. This leads to a lot of unhappiness.
Meanwhile, in the background, the world is facing some pretty big challenges that need the attention of the world’s best and brightest minds.
Part of my own purpose is helping others take the first step towards reconnecting and reclaiming the things that matter to them. Here are on some thoughts on taking that first step.
We live in a time of unprecedented abundance and stability.
We are surrounded by marvelous things. But we take the marvelous for granted and consider them ordinary, despite the fact that our lives are filled with unprecedented abundance and stability that never existed in human history until today.
Most people living in rich countries live far better than royalty ever did for most of human history. Indoor plumbing, sanitation, clean water, electricity, access to antibiotics and basic medicine, plentiful food, communication devices that look up all of human information on the Internet in an instant, cars and airplanes that go anywhere on the planet—the list of things that we simply take for granted did not exist up until a couple hundred years ago. This list would have been the envy of any Caesar, Khan, or Shāhanshāh for thousands of years.
Such abundance and stability provides a basic comfort that most humans never had. Consequently, there has never been a better time in history to take the type of risks associated with personal development, with reclaiming the things that matter.
The pandemic has shown how sensitive—even fleeting—this time of abundance and stability might be. Perhaps, looking back decades from now, the wealth of the 20th century may look singularly unique in history. The challenges associated with the Anthropocene, such as climate change and massive biodiversity loss, are imminent, and will soon pose giant challenges to our economies and societies.
It is critical, then, to take full advantage of stability when it exists and invest in the things that matter to you.
The world needs passionate people committed to positive impact more than ever.
In a related manner, the challenges of the 21st century will not solve themselves. The next two or three decades will determine how our descendants will live on this planet for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years. A collapse of the global climate system is imminent and may have already commenced. Similarly, the Sixth Great Extinction threatens the Earth’s rich biodiversity, and if we do nothing, we will live on a planet barren of most other life.
We need an army of awakened entrepreneurs who are passionate about positive impact and passionate about making the world a better place. We need geniuses from all sorts of backgrounds and industries who can develop the new technologies and push for the right type of social changes that can stabilize the climate and maintain our global civilization for centuries to come. And we need to implement these types of changes soon and in a manner that is just, equitable, and dignified for all people.
Aligning with your highest purpose activates a personal destiny that will set you on a specific path just for you. That highest purpose is also aligned with the best interests of the planet and our descendants, as well. By following your highest purpose, I believe you are destined to make the world a better place.
Recognize that a life built around your highest purpose will look different.
If you want to have a different life built around passion and in alignment with your highest purpose, then recognize that you will need to live differently. Your daily activities, social and professional circles, nights, weekends, travel plans—every aspect of your life—will change and adapt in response to you living a different way of life and as you prioritize and reclaim the things that matter to you.
This can be quite a scary thought. Even someone totally miserable might prefer the “devil they know” of their current life, to the challenges of stepping into the unknown. But you have to keep in mind that in becoming the real you, you will be thinking and acting in a new way for the first time in your life. You will be generating thoughts and actions that have never existed before in anyone else, ever. And anytime you do something totally new, there is risk associated with the unknown, as there is with any terra incognita. That’s the bargain that comes with living in a free way, and in a way that is alignment with your true self. In my view, this is a very small price to pay. But you will have to live with some degree of risk that you may not have felt before.
A good first step—prioritize a single passion.
Many people reading this may resonate with these concepts, but maybe are not yet ready to begin this process. My advice is to start small. Prioritize a single passion in your life that you’ve let drift to the wayside. Maybe it was an interest in music, an art form, a sport, learning a language, a type of poetry that existed in the 17th century. What’s important is that it is something that gives you joy. Make time in your day for that passion, even if it’s just 10 or 20 minutes, just to reconnect with a part of yourself that you may have forgotten about, but which wants to be nurtured. Get in the habit of connecting with things that are important to you. Start with this single passion.
The rest will fall into place after that.