Life Path Exercise
In our busy life-styles we can easily become caught up doing things that aren’t satisfying on a deeper level, and that may cause us to lose sight of what we really want to be doing, so here’s a little exercise you might like to complete in a quiet moment:
- When you sit quietly for an hour, stilling your mind, leaving the world behind, what do you then feel is your highest purpose in being here?
- If you were to die at the age of 98, having lead a great life, what would your Obituary say? (Please write it, beginning with the date when you are 98, and write it from the point of view of your adult child or best friend, wanting others to appreciate who you were, what you did, and what you left behind).
- What are three things that you are currently doing that you would rather not be doing?
- What are three things that you are currently doing that you would like to do more of?
- What are three things that you are currently NOT doing that you would like to do?
Tips for This Exercise
Have a pen and pad to hand before you start the first step, and write your thoughts as they flow, in the language you would use in talking to a 12 year old child.
If you document a challenge in any of your answers, leave space below it so that you can go back and insert at least one option as to how you might or could overcome that.
If you document a dream or desire, leave space below it so that you can go back and insert at least one early step that you could take on the path to making that a reality.
Write your answers in “free flow” first time around; then rewrite them to leave out anything that does not add to the clarity of the story that you are telling. Don’t alter what you have written to “sound good” or to omit painful insights or truths – you’ll lose value if you do.
Be prepared to talk this over, between versions, but only with people who care about you, and only in either a (male) problem-solving and solution-seeking frame of mind, or in a (female) listen-while-I-talk manner; never in a negative, blaming or “excuses” frame of mind.
If you gain realisations from talking with others, include notes on those insights.
Draw from this material to cast your Goals for the future.
Enjoy!
