How to Craft A Purpose-Driven Life

There is a difference between designing a life versus making a living.

People who are simply “making a living” are living the life that society considers to be average or normal. Whereas people who design a life are choosing for themselves how they want to live and then making it happen.

When I graduated with my Research Master in Health Sciences and moved to Australia, I thought I was living the dream. I got the degrees I wanted, moved overseas like I always dreamed off, and had a better partner than I could ever imagine. But even though it seemed like I was “living the dream” or “making it,” I was deeply unhappy and felt like I was living someone else's life.

I had this dysfunctional belief that “If I'm successful, I'll be happy.”

But this couldn't be further from the truth, and over time I realised that I had to reframe my beliefs and design a life that works for me - not someone else's life - to be truly happy.

Here’s how to start designing a life that works for you.

Step 1. Create A Personal Mission Statement

Before you can set meaningful goals or build productive habits, you need to figure out what truly matters to you. This is where a personal mission statement comes in.

A personal mission statement is like a compass—it helps you navigate the twists and turns of life. It’s a concise declaration of your values and purpose, guiding your decisions in both your career and personal life.

Think of it like this: without a clear mission, it’s hard to prioritise your goals or know what to focus on each day. But when your mission is clear, you can create a daily routine that’s sustainable, brings you happiness, and maximises your productivity.

The goal is to create a coherent life so that you can clearly connect the dots between:

1. Who you are
2. What you believe
3. What you are doing

As Steven Covey says:

A mission statement is not something you write overnight… But fundamentally, your mission statement becomes your constitution, the solid expression of your vision and values. It becomes the criterion by which you measure everything else in your life.

To help you define your mission statement, find a quiet space, minimise distractions, and answer the following questions:

1. Define Your Core Values: What is most important to you? What do you stand for?
2. Consider Your Strengths: What are you good at and what do you enjoy doing?
3. Identify Your Goals: What do you want to achieve in your career and personal life?
4. Write Your Mission Statement: Keep it concise, specific, and reflective of your values, strengths, and goals.

Example mission statements:

• Oprah Winfrey: “To be a teacher and to be known for inspiring my students to be more than they thought they could be.”
• Elon Musk: “If something is important enough you should try, even if the probable outcome is failure.”
• Mine: “To empower people to build a happier, healthier, and more meaningful life by providing them with the tools and resources they need to succeed.”

Step 2. Set Goals And Build Systems

With your mission statement in hand, you can now set goals and create systems to move you forward.

• What are the things you need to do to live coherently with your personal mission statement?
• What are the main things in life you want to accomplish?
• What steps do you need to take to get closer to these accomplishments?
• How can you build these steps into your daily routine?

To get a better understanding of the difference between goals and systems, think of a writer. The main goal of a writer is to write a book, and the system is the writing schedule that he or she follows every day.

Some people argue that when you're working towards a goal, you essentially tell yourself that you are not good enough and will only be “successful” or “happy” once you've reached your goal.

This is why so many people stop eating healthy when they've reached their goal weight, and go back to their old habits - what is also better known as the “yo-yo effect.”

I'm guilty of this myself, but what I've found over the years is that I need both Big Goals and Micro Goals to guide me and act like a compass to my bigger mission in life.

• Big Goals: Big Goals are big, ambitious, overarching goals that push you to grow and adapt. A big goal is for example running a sub-3 marathon.
• Micro Goals: Micro Goals are small, incremental growth and development targets. They are the small steps that happen along the way to get to your bigger goals, such as completing a 10K run.
• System: The daily routine you set in place to make sure you accomplish your Micro Goals and Big Goals.

Here are some of the benefits of setting goals:

1. They bring the blurred into focus: They close the gap between where you are now and where you want to be.
2. They help you examine what pushes you towards or away from your mission statement: When you keep track of your goals, it forces you to assess what is good or hindering in your life.
3. They help you identify the emotions around your why: Your goals will solidify your why. Our lives are run by emotions. If you can channel your emotions and energy towards a purpose, it increases the chances of success.

You can set proper goals and build systems by following the four-step success formula for change and achievement: PLAN.

• Plan your vision and set goals: To get where you’re going, setting goals becomes essential. It not only gives your brain something to focus on but also creates a sense of “I’m here and want to be there.” Think of the things you need to do to live coherently with your personal mission statement.
  • What are some of your Bigger Goals?
  • What are your Micro Goals?
• List your actions or create an action plan: This is where you outline your system and the steps you need to take every day to reach your goals. Creating a goal without a system or action plan is like piloting a flight to a new destination without GPS. For example, my mission is to empower people to build a happier and more meaningful life. So every day, I make sure to set aside some time to read and write about happiness, work on my articles, or script, film and edit my videos.
  • What do you need to do every day to accomplish these goals?
• Assess outcomes and check your progress: This is where a habit tracker can be a great solution. You can keep track of your progress by making sure you stick to your system. A good rule is to follow the two-day rule, where you don't miss a habit two days in a row. On can find some helpful tools under resources.
  • Get the Free Habit Tracker
• If your plan is not working, determine a New approach: Life is not straight forward and we can't plan or control everything. So whenever you find that something isn't working for you, you adjust your plan, test it out, and keep moving forward.

In short, set Big goals and Micro goals, create a system to help you accomplish your goals, check frequently to see whether it’s working, and if it’s not, move to Plan B. If Plan B doesn’t work, move to Plan C, and so on.

If you just keep moving forward with action, you’ll eventually get it right. The problem is that very few people check frequently for progress, and fewer adjust their action plan.