What did you love to play as a child? How would you spend a lazy weekend or unplanned time after school? What lit you up before the tween/teen years, before you perhaps started caring more what others thought and said?
This is not a fluff question. What you loved as a child can typically connect you to your purpose in some way, shape, or form.
For example, looking back I was never a girl into hair or fashion (contrary to what the accompanying photo might suggest! 🙂 ). I rarely wore anything name brand and had long, thick, wild hair for most of my youth.
And for better or for worse, I still have pretty big hair and little idea how to dress myself!
But, I started a lot of clubs, and required…er, requested…that my friends come to meetings prepared with new ideas, research, drawings, and so forth. I wanted them to showcase their best, share what I had learned, and for everyone to cheer everyone else on. I asked a lot of questions. I read a lot, and even had a favorite willow tree in the front yard that I would climb with a book for hours on end. And I wrote constantly – in diaries, to friends, for school. In fact, when required to turn in a week’s worth of daily journal entries for junior high English class, my teacher wrote in the margins how in all her years of teaching, she never had a student write quite so many pages for that assignment!
As an adult, my career revolves around bringing out the best in people in a variety of ways: creating communities, speaking and training, coaching – which involves lots of questions, sharing new worlds discovered through reading, and writing, writing, writing – for the blog, in my journal, for publications like Forbes and Huffington Post, in academic journals, and so on. What I loved to do as a child has shifted form in some ways but is still the foundation of what I love to do now – and what I believe is part of my purpose here on earth: To inspire positive action.
So how about you? What captured your attention when you were young? What did you find yourself drawn to during summer vacation, quiet weekends, or even as favorite subjects and activities at school?
What role do they play in your life now? Or perhaps, what role would you like them to play?
How might they contribute to your purpose?
Consider taking some time to reflect on these questions while out for a walk, in your journal, or with a trusted friend. You may be surprised how many clues your childhood offers you about what lights you up and matters most to you today!
Want to get crystal clear on your purpose, as well as how to put it into action at work and in life? Join us for Spark on November 3 – click here for details!