Don’t Just Find Your Why (But Challenge It)

Read any personal development content these days and you’ll see the suggestion to find your why for what you want to do/have/be before thinking about how to get it.

Start with why.

Find your why.

Find the why behind your why.

Find your purpose.

You get the idea.

And while I wholeheartedly agree with this approach, there’s another part of the “find your why” equation no one mentions that I believe is equally valuable.

See, while everyone tells you to find your why for what you want to do, let’s not forget to regularly examine and challenge our why for what we’re already currently doing.

What do I mean by that?

Well, I get that a lot of us stick to our current job because it pays the bills. And I have no problem with that. This is where side gigs are so beneficial.

But, there’s a lot of people sitting in a job they don’t like just because they don’t know what else to do.

It’s the safe option.

(Again, I don’t mean safe as in “I need to know that my bills are covered this month”, I mean safe as in “I don’t want to feel uncomfortable by embracing the fact that I might not be doing what I want to be doing.”)

So the question then becomes:

Are you just doing what you’re doing because it’s a safe way to not have to go through the pain of figuring out what you REALLY want to do or acknowledging that you’re not doing it?

Yes, I went there.

No, I’m not sorry.

My job is to serve, not to please.

If you’re currently doing what you’re doing to make sure the bills get paid, I salute you. And, know that you can still create what you want after hours.

But if you’re just doing what you’re doing because you’re afraid of embarking on the journey of creating your ideal life and/or have no idea how to get started, please realize that this fear is a temporary discomfort that, once transcended, leads to a lifetime of fulfillment that you currently think is ‘unrealistic’.

When you do decide to create a new version of your reality, start with why. But until then, challenge the why of your current situation.