by Bridget Webber

Created on: January 04, 2009   Last Updated: September 29, 2011

Studies have shown that when people feel they understand their purpose in life they are more likely to be happy as individuals. It would seem people need to realise why they are here on Earth and understand the direction they should be headed in order to have a meaningful life.

The purpose of life may be different for each person. This is perhaps why knowing exactly what your purpose is can be difficult as you have to discover this by yourself. There are no books written for you personally to tell you what your purpose in life is, but there are ways you can delve into the unknown which will help point you in the right direction.

There are several lines of thought with regards to what life’s purpose may be. Some people understand it to be an individual’s career choice, while others see their purpose to be spiritual in nature and dependent on their inner being.

If you follow along the first lines of thought about this matter, about your purpose being that which you physically do, you may best find the answer by looking at what makes you tick.

Each person has a soul which beats to a different drum. This is what makes people unique and special. There is always something which gives individuals an inner sense of energy that means a lot to them, even though it may not to others. It could be that someone lives to write and that communication; creativity and expression give them an incentive to carry on. For such a person what they are already doing may be their purpose.

Others may love to dance, paint, care for animals or children or attempt to solve mathematical mysteries. Whatever it is that gives a person an inner spark will be their purpose and should be pursued if happiness is to be fully attained.

The second line of thought, that your purpose may be more spiritual in nature, takes other aspects of life into consideration. These aspects tend to be associated with inner growth and learning.

As you move on in life you cannot help but learn things. However, there may be particular things you are destined to come across because they are to do with your spiritual development. Your purpose may be primarily concerned with your level of learning, understanding and emotional, or mental, development.

A way to help you discover your life's purpose is to look at patterns in your life so far. Does life seem to keep repeating certain circumstances for you? Or does it seem to be constantly pushing you in a particular direction? If so then you are probably coming up against your purpose, or reason for being.

There is one third possibility you may contemplate. That is that your purpose is a combination of the two lines of thought discussed above. It may be that what you love to do, combined with spiritual growth is the true purpose of your life.

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