Why Finding Your Purpose Might Be the Most Important Goal You’ve Got

You wake up. Same four walls. Same inbox. Same coffee, reheated.

Something’s missing.

It’s not dissatisfaction exactly. It’s more like… untapped potential. A quiet voice that whispers: You know there’s more to life than this?

You’re the FNG—the Fresh New Guy who has decided to start asking better questions. It’s why you’re reading this article. And few questions cut deeper than this one:

What’s your purpose?

Admittedly, that’s a big question. In short, we mean the thing that gives you direction. Fuels your motivation. Delivers meaning. Offers genuine fulfilment.

What Is Purpose, Really?

Purpose is about knowing what matters to you—and shaping your life around that.

It’s the why behind your decisions. The red thread that runs through your values, your work, your relationships, and what lights you up.

As psychologist Viktor Frankl once said:

“Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear almost any ‘how’.”

Purpose gives you:

Direction – It shows you where you’re heading and keeps you from drifting.

Motivation – It pushes you through setbacks, uncertainty, Monday mornings and bad coffee.

Meaning – It turns daily effort into something that actually matters.

Fulfilment – It’s the quiet satisfaction of knowing, no matter what,  you’re living in alignment with who you are. And without it life can feel like treading water.

What Happens When Purpose Is Missing?

Without a sense of purpose, life starts to blur. You might be productive, but you’re not progressing. You’re moving, but not meaningfully.

You might feel:

– Tired, even after a full night’s sleep

– Unmotivated at work, distracted at home

– Disconnected from what once excited you

– Like you’re waiting for your “real” life to begin

When this feeling lingers, it can morph into burnout, anxiety, even depression. As organisational psychologist Dr. Michael Gervais puts it:

“The absence of purpose is the breeding ground for disengagement.”

But here’s the good news: it doesn’t have to stay that way. In fact, the moment you start asking these questions, you’re already on your way back.

Purpose Isn’t Just Found. It’s Built.

Let’s clear something up: your purpose isn’t hiding in a retreat centre or buried under a yoga mat in Bali. You don’t have to quit your job, shave your head or start a kimchi brand (unless you genuinely want to).

Purpose isn’t found. It’s built. Day by day. Choice by choice. Action by action.

Stay open to opportunities to grow

Choice is a privilege. You have it in abundance. Exercise it. Choose on a second-by-second basis.

Doomscrolling? Go off grid and choose something new to learn about a subject matter you had no idea about. The smartphone is useful. It helps you explore the world.

Practise saying yes, from time to time. Routines are necessary, but operating outside your comfort zone is where you’ll find out most about yourself.

Take Chris, for example.

Chris Found His Purpose—And It Wasn’t What He Expected

Chris was going through the motions. Same commute. Same tasks. Same result: nothing changed. 

His job? Fixing broken data. Functional, important—but not exactly game-changing. A treadmill in disguise.

And Chris was good at his job. It brought him a lot of respect throughout his career. But, silently Chris knew that it didn’t tick all the boxes.

Then one day, a colleague from an employee resource group asked him to lend a hand on a project—something about improving workplace wellbeing. Chris had the skills, sure. But no one had ever asked him to use them like this. So, he said “yes”. He stayed open to opportunities.

From day one, he felt it: energy.

He wasn’t just fixing data anymore. He was fixing people. Helping real lives behind the numbers.

When the project wrapped, he felt something he hadn’t in years: pride. Not performative, KPI-box-ticking pride. Quiet, soul-deep pride. And once he found it, it was impossible for him to go back.

So he did something bold.

He walked into his boss’s office and asked for a change. Not more money. Not a step up the ladder. A different kind of work—people work.

Weeks later, he was offered a promotion into a new role in people management. No more autopilot. No more treadmill.

Now, Chris’s outcomes are measured in faces, not spreadsheets. He didn’t just change jobs. He found his purpose.

(True story by the way – the names have been changed to protect the innocent.)

How to Start: 3 Simple Ways to Begin Building Purpose

Here are three activities to help you reconnect with what truly matters to you:

1. Write Your Legacy Letter

It’s your 80th birthday. Someone stands up to give a speech about your life.

What do you hope they say?Who did you impact? What values did you live by?

2. Track Energy, Not Time

For one week, take notes on:

– What energises you?

– What drains you?

– When do you feel most like you?

The goal isn’t productivity. It’s awareness. And within the patterns, you’ll find clues to your purpose and what actually matters to you.

3. Ask the Magic Question

“If you had unlimited time, money and confidence—what would you do?”

Not just: what job would I take? But: who would I help? What change would I make? What kind of life would I build?

This is not fantasy—it’s insight. It reveals what you were always drawn to before the world told you to be realistic.

Why we’re afraid of purpose (and why we need it anyway)

You don’t want to sleepwalk through life. You’ve only got one shot, so you want to max it out.

But deep down, are you a little scared of what that might require? You’re not alone.

We avoid purpose because it asks something of us:

– To show up

– To care

– To steer

– To grow

But avoiding it doesn’t make life easier. It just makes it emptier.

Start small. Stay curious. Keep asking, FNG—because this is where things get interesting.

Purpose Encourages Resilience

Purpose isn’t some grand prize for the lucky few—it’s a muscle. You strengthen it every time you do something that reflects your values. It makes heavy lifting lighter.

And if life feels chaotic or overwhelming right now? That’s exactly why purpose matters.

It doesn’t remove the chaos—but it teaches you to dance in the eye of a storm. It gives your struggle meaning. It gives your wins significance. It gives your choices direction.

So go on. Plant something. Help someone. Build something that reflects who you are and what you stand for.

We’ll see you at The Farm, where all good ideas grow.