You have retired or are considering retirement. Over the years, you have developed and honed the skills you have used in your life and your career. Your career is over, but you still have the skills and life goes on. One question you should ask is: How I could apply my skills that contribute to the greater good?
The first step is to identify the things you care about. The second is to think about the world around you, your homes, communities, and the world at large. While envisioning an ideal future world, ask yourself:
- What are your talents?
- How can you use your skills to support a cause??
- What do you care about?
Once you answer, think about how you can use your skills to help others in your community.
So many of my friends tell me they don’t seem to have the time to do all the things they want to do and the most precious thing they have is time. Understanding your values most may help you narrow down your purpose in life to something manageable that also truly resonates with you.
Finding and completing an online survey may help. Here is a link to an article on values to start the search. Once you have a clearer image of your values, ask yourself: What do these say about you? How do these influence your life? How do they relate to what you want to do with the rest of your life? Doing this exercise can help you discover how you can put your values to use.
Purpose needs more than self-reflection. Trying new things can help you make a difference.. I volunteer, and through volunteering, I found a purpose. If you have never volunteered, then you are entering a brand new, rewarding world. Volunteering in a community organization focused on something of interest will be rewarding.
Volunteering and serving others can put you in touch with people who share your passions. Volunteering has the added benefit of improving our health and longevity, at least for some. When you find a good match for you, volunteering will probably feel right.
This process of finding your values is important to you and your family. Thinking about what you've always wanted to do but could not to because of other responsibilities can be fulfilling. There seems to be something about seeing what you truly want for yourself and the world that can help bring you closer to achieving it.
To find purpose, it helps to foster positive emotions, like awe and gratitude. That’s because each of these emotions is tied to well-being, caring about others, and finding meaning in life, which all help us focus on how we can contribute to the world.
Awe can be inspired by seeing the beauty in nature or thinking about an inspirational moment. Gratitude can be practiced by keeping a gratitude journal or writing a gratitude letter to someone who helped you in life.
Reading about civil rights leaders or climate activists can motivate you to work for the greater good. It is important to remember that we don’t need fame to fulfill our purpose in life. You just need to look at your inner compass and start taking small steps in the direction that means the most to you.
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