By Ahsan

So here we are some 16 months since the world became engulfed in a massive global change. Life is indeed different and will likely be on a new path from now on. That said, we all are doing our best to adjust and carry on with the business of living life.

Along the way, we have likely had some serious self-reflection about what matters most to us. We have probably thought about how we should spend our days and moments to live our most Awesome Life.

In other words, more than ever before, we were asked by life to answer the question:

“What is the purpose of your life?”

What is the answer for you?

I bet that today is a great time to visit or revisit this question because the benefits to your life are too significant to ignore.

About six years ago, we published our book Awesome Life, on Amazon. The subtitle is Create The Life You Always Wanted And Soar With Purpose. A good life comes from having a purpose, just like the hero in every story or movie has a mission. As self-evident as this concept may be, we can all use a reminder, especially in times like these.

Don’t forget, you are the hero in the story of your life!

Having a purpose in life might just be the missing piece of the puzzle. But, as said by Dr. Alan Zimmerman, author of Pivot, "the purpose of life is a life of purpose."

My takeaway from this message is that life is like being on a sailboat where the wind causes the boat to move in a specific direction. However, the rudder is a crucial component of the sailboat. Like having a purpose, it allows you to take the circumstances of life (the wind) and manipulate the direction you want to go (purpose in life).

Your purpose in life is your rudder on the sailboat of life!

With purpose, you will have two outstanding benefits that will set you on the course of an Awesome Life:

1. A life with direction

2. A life with meaning

And you know what else? Having a purpose in life will cover 97% of all the other things you try to do well daily! It will cover achieving your goals, attaining happiness, cultivating a winner's mindset, fostering excellent relationships, spiritual connection to your Creator, helping your fellow man, and even make you a better person!

That's a lot of knock-on effect, wouldn't you say?

So here is a plan to help you answer or reinvent the purpose of your life:

Action Steps:

1. Make yourself a cup of tea and sit down with your journal and give yourself a good one hour of quiet time to think and brainstorm some ideas.

2. Then, at the top of your page, write down "My Purpose In Life."

3. Now make two columns, one that says "Things I can do for myself" and the other "Things I can do for others."

4. Start writing things as they come to your mind under each column, and don't judge them. Let the ideas flow.

5. Look at what starts to pop out at you as exciting, not just enjoyable, from the completed lists.

6. Circle the ones that you really like and do the next step: Write down your Awesome Life Purpose: ALP

7. Here is a template for your consideration:

My life’s purpose consists of (your list of things you might do for others)

I also make my life’s purpose (your list of things you will do for yourself)

When I live my life with purpose, I feel (write down the emotions you will achieve and state of mind you will be in by living your life with purpose).

Here is an example:

“My life's purpose consists of being helpful to my family and friends. I also make it my life's purpose to improve my skills in my work life and personal life. When I live my life with purpose, I feel happy and motivated.”

Perhaps now more than ever, we can all benefit from thinking about the purpose of our life.

The benefits of having direction and meaning in life are genuinely too big to ignore.

If you are feeling rudderless, go make that cup of tea. If you know someone who might need to read this article, please share it with them.

Be Awesome, and may all your life be filled with purpose!

Liked this blog post? Share it with others who could benefit from this. Don’t forget to join the Awesome Life Subscriber’s email list and enjoy more content for Awesome subscribers only! Enter your name and email address at this site to get started: awesomelifebook.com

By Ahsan

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” Winston Churchill

There was this farmer who always won the best corn prize in his county fair year after year. What was his secret? He did something that surprised the reporter of the local TV station who asked this very question.

The farmer replied he gave all his neighbours his foundation seeds to also have good corn crops that were robust and tasty. The reporter, a little surprised, asked, why would you do that? Why would the farmer be giving his best seeds to his competition?

The farmer said that might be, but it works best in all our interests because the wind blows the pollen from the corn across farms. The cross-pollination of good seeds affects all farmers in a beneficial way. The better one farmer’s corn is, the better all of the corn becomes. In other words, the farmer understood that if he is to do well, he must help his neighbours to do well also.

This story reminds me of this verse in the Holy Quran about corn:
The similitude of those who spend their wealth for the cause of Allah is like the similitude of a grain of corn which grows seven ears, in each ear a hundred grains. And Allah multiplies it further for whomsoever He pleases; and Allah is Bountiful, All-Knowing. ⎯The Holy Quran, Chapter 2 verse 262

The wealth we have to share is not just money. It can be many things including our time, our experience, and our advice. The rewards that we get could be in the future or even in the present through a life well-lived and a feeling of personal contentment. This is the ‘wealth’ that keeps growing in your life like a healthy cornfield.

So here is the takeaway.

This lesson of life illustrated by the corn farmer allows us to really live before we die through generosity of spirit and attitude.

The essence of a life well-lived is to have helped others around us, whether by a smile, spending time to give them company or encouragement, spending in the way of the less fortunate, building relationships, or just building people. The possibilities are infinite!

The clock of life is ticking by for all of us. The final moment is never known. This is why we need to live before we die. It’s natural to think about life after death but what about life before death?

How might you define it for yourself?

Take some time out today to answer that fundamental question and make your remaining days really matter!

Action Steps:

On a piece of paper, write the question down. What matters most to me for my life to be lived before I die?
Then, do some brainstorming and write down any answers that pop into your mind under that heading. Look at that list and see what you feel inspired to focus on.
Edit your list to make a final list full of the most inspiring ideas you will try to live out!

Just like an ear of corn contains within it a field of corn, you too are filled with an ability to multiply the good in your life and the lives of many others. This just might be the secret of a good life before you die. What say you?