While many people say “Find your Purpose and Align your actions towards it”, many people do not have a purpose. There is nothing to be ashamed of or reason to grill yourself for a lack of purpose.
Let me break down the confusions that might arise before they pop up.
Purpose is not ambition or aim.
🎯 Aim – A specific functional target. It can be as simple as getting bread into my stomach tomorrow.
🚀 Ambition – It is a strong, upward-looking desire for rank, status, or achievement. Eg: “I want to be rich” or “I want to be a rank holder.”
Now, coming back to why you need not be ashamed if someone asks you what is your purpose.
Most students or job-seekers are fighting for their survival or fighting for their needs.
An American Psychologist, Abraham Maslow, explains this as the “Hierarchy of Needs”. For the sake of this post, I have categorized it as L1 to L5. L1 being the lowest and L5 being the highest.
L1: Physiological Needs – Shelter, Food, Water, Rest etc. 🏠
L2: Safety Needs – Physical, Economic, and Emotional Safety 🛡️
L3: Love and Belonging – Friendship, Intimacy, Family, and Love ❤️
L4: Esteem – Self-Esteem + Respect from others 🏆
L5: Self-Actualization – Dreams, seeking happiness etc. ✨
So, if you are struggling to fulfill L1 to L4, how can you get L5?
It is like asking a drowning man, “Which place do you plan to swim to eventually?” when he is struggling to stay afloat and live. 🏊♂️
Also, let’s acknowledge that the world is unfair. It is purely random. Few have all the L1 to L4 ticked off so that they can proceed with L5, while many struggle at even L1 or L2.
If you are grinding just to get a job or pass an exam, you aren’t “lost.” You are just busy securing the foundation. 🧱