Forums IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ Beyond Human Lacking a Defined purpose

Reading think and grow rich: one of the most common reasons for failure is LACK OF A DEFFINITE PURPOSE. I realize that last couple of years of my life I have been searching for this. It has created this feeling of mental inertia in me -where the harder I try, the more I am getting no where. I know I wan to be really succesful!

How is it that certain people just know what they want to do in life, and go at it full speed. I feel hopeless!

Purpose in life?

One of the greatest forms of self-torture comes from the belief that somehow you should know what your purpose in life is.

The way I look at it is that life, for the most part, is an experiment. Look at the number of things you have to learn in order to function as a human being. You had to learn to walk, to talk, to function as a social being. They're pretty hard, and while we're wired for them, they are trial and error. Some people don't learn how to do them well ... and these are pretty basic things.

We aren't born knowing basic things. Learning what you are good at, what provides meaning for you, what you are made to do or be or whatever is a process of trial and error. It's not something you're born with, it's something you learn. I think it's possible to go through life with a brain and body geared to be a virtuoso at x and never ever find out what x is.

Look at natural selection. It's how most people learn. Randomness produces a variety of results. Some of them are well suited to an environment and replicate, others are not and die off. You are presented with a situation you can't handle, you try all kinds of things, some work, you keep them, some don't, you chuck them out.

My answer to this problem is that there is no high fallutin purpose to life. Our purposes are personal, meaningful to us. It's subjective. We both discover and create meanings in our lives through a combination of intention and chance. Don't torture yourself with a sense of necessity and failure over an idea that you should know x, y, or z. It's BS.

Sometimes the most rewarding, successful activity comes from LACK OF A DEFINITE PURPOSE on a level. For instance, in computer science genetic algorthims are highly successful at finding a variety of good solutions because, at a level, the generated solutions are completely random. In a sense, there is no purpose, no filter, affecting their generation. I think life, to a great extent, is like this. You try this, you try that, eventually you find something that works. It isn't the only thing that works, it's just something that works.

Art and play are often of great value because of their purposelessness. Take a giant (as big as a house) screwdriver. There ain't no screw that thing is good for, but it sure gives one hell of an asthetic experience.

To paraphrase Zhaung Zse, the knobby, twisted, gnarled tree is left to live while the purpose-serving, straight, perfect ones are cut down and used for wood.

Maybe you realize you're spinning your wheels because you're spinning your wheels so much in service of these ideas that are supposed to be making you happy. Could it be possible that the kinds of mental inquiries and efforts you've been going through in order to make yourself happy have been, instead, making you miserable?

Don't be so hard on yourself. Maybe the biggest success for you will be discovering that you don't have to be successful?

That's my belief about it, anyway.

I agree, I hold a very similar view. You said it well. Just stay open, relax, and things naturally sort come into equilization. The possibilities are limitless and every human on this earth has infinite abilities and a very flexible nature, it just takes tapping into it. Getting out of that one track mind, and programs that we may have aquired growing up.

Very helpful! Thank you!

beautiful post babayada.

rebel, I haven't read that book. However, the statement I'm more familiar with is that most common reason for failure is the lack of a good goal. The good part is important. However, I've not heard it as a purpose. Not that having a purpose in life wouldn't be better than having and achieving good goals.

A good goal, is achievable, within your control, has a measureable success state, has a time limit, and is realistic. I may have forgotten a property or two.

I want to be a billionaire is achievable. It's within my control as much as anything is. I'll know when I get there, provided I can count (or add) that high. I want to do it by tomorrow is time limited, but not it's not realistic. At least not for me. But there could be someone out there that may be about to make it happen.

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As for your life's purpose I've read a few opinions on this. Some say we all have one. However, most don't know it. Some seem to say we all have the same purpose. Few opinions I've seen has said you have to know your purpose. I've seen several that say knowing your purpose is life altering. However, I've seen some say that your life's direction (direction not purpose - semantics maybe) can change throughout your life.

I don't know if you can really know what your or anybodies purpose is. Those that think they do, may only be deluding themselves. If they are happy and not hurting anyone, I say all the best to them.

I'd say that if you don't believe that a purpose exist, then I'd say you won't find yours. I'm not saying one does exist, I'm just saying you won't find one until your beliefs change and you are ready to see one.

I don't think you need one either. However, I do think life is better if you are working in or towards something that you believe in.

I'd say search your feelings and find what makes you happy. If may not give you what you now think of as success, but things will change. Maybe what makes you happy will change, maybe you idea of happiness, maybe your idea of success.

You are perfection.
Iam2

The definite major purpose he refers to in his works center around the career goals that you have. The works of Napoleon Hill talk about a universal intelligence, he states, in some of his other works, that he uses this so he does not offend people of varying religious backgrouonds. I would view was he is talking about the definite major purpose as a career goal. I do not think he intended to direct your life's meaning. I use his 6 steps to turn desire into gold, but I keep my religious/spiritual life's purpose seperate. I hope this helps.

Fritz

Also, I think the major thing he is trying to get across is that you think you can you will.

[This message has been edited by fritz10000000 (edited January 21, 2004).]

I agree with fritz10000000 and others about the importance of Goals.

Paul Scheele, at the end of his Photoreading Course (tape 8) says that only 3% (I think) of the population ever make goals.

This just goes to show how random most people's lives and achievements have become.

Another thing: I know of people who have financial security, good house, good family and friends etc but are not happy at all. In fact, these things alone don't seem to matter at all.

Perhaps we take many things for granted. It is only when the well runs dry that you feel the thirst.

Will financial success make you any happier? I don't know but I would like to give it a try!

Seriously though, to have a definite purpose, you have to have an idea or rather a "feeling" of what you like to do. What type of activity / work would you like to do even if you did not get paid for it?

Once you realise this you can set yourself goals. Plan your work and then work to your plan - Paul Scheele (PR CD8 )

[This message has been edited by solutions-r-us (edited January 24, 2004).]