What Gives Life Purpose
It’s much more than a brief mood state
How would you describe what you consider the motivating factor that keeps you going when you are engaged in everyday tasks? Maybe you’re visiting an elderly relative every day at the hospital in their recovery time following major surgery. It’s out of the way and takes time, and you don’t enjoy the medical setting. However, you consistently arrive each day after work. When you leave, you get a little boost in your health and well-being as you realize you’ve performed some useful purpose.
Within the field of positive psychology, “sense of purpose” or the concept of a “sense of purpose” in life is a notion that forms the basis of the work done by the field. Contrary to “searching for meaning” or the “search” for meaning, a “sense of purpose” is a firm conviction of your existence heading in a particular direction.
The Many Ways to Think About Sense of Purpose
As prevalent as the idea is in positive psychology, it is a concept that doesn’t have a defined and precise definition. As per Northwestern’s Gabrielle PFfund (2023), There are at least three distinct methods to evaluate the concept. Check out the scores you could earn on the test items that you can find in these tests:
Brief Purpose Measure
I have a path in my life.
My plans reflect my fundamental values and interests.
Purpose in Life Scale
I live daily and don’t worry about the future (reverse-scored).
My everyday activities are often insignificant and irrelevant to me (reverse-scored).
A few people wander throughout life. However, I’m not one of them.
Life Engagement Test
For me, my activities are valuable.
I am proud of my efforts immensely.
There are many reasons to be alive.
If you go through and assess yourself on each of these things, it is clear that they all have in common the aspect of trying to bring the parts of your life into some form of organization. But according to, Pfund noted that there is a crucial differentiation between “purpose” and “meaning.” You may feel like your work has some purpose; however, does it have any meaning?
So, you may be organized and get things accomplished; however, do these aspects have any significance? The solution to this problem, Pfund suggested, is to think of a “sense of purpose” as an inner-directedness, or “the extent to which one feels they have personally meaningful goals and direction” as opposed to. “purpose in life” as “an individual’s specific overarching goal and direction.”
Sense of Purpose as an Enduring Quality of Personality
While the words of these words may appear to be a simple variation, Pfund suggested that they have distinct meanings. A sense of purpose can be more clearly defined as a “trait” or consistent pattern in the personality. It would constitute a set of feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. In other words, the “overarching goal” implied in life’s purpose is tied to motivation or the need to reach specific objectives.
Suppose you view the sense of determination as a character quality. According to. In that case, Northwestern psychologist believes that this can be a “necessary step in understanding how to help individuals develop and harness it.” Think about a similar situation that is conscientiousness as a trait that is well-known in the Five Factor Model. There is a chance that you’re lacking this aspect, and consequently, your home or office may not be neat enough. Are you destined to be a messiah for the rest of your life? Being aware that your morality requires some focus, you may decide to gather your resources and change your lifestyle.
If someone recognizes that they don’t possess the same level of conviction of direction, they could be in a great position to take the “necessary step” to see their life with more direction.
To prove that a sense of direction is an important characteristic, Pfund turned to the research of the psychological researcher Gordon Allport, who set the eight criteria that define an idea in psychology that fits the definition of an attribute. One is that a sense of purpose cannot be explained better by other traits and is associated with a “vast” number of significant results in your life. They include improved subjective health, a higher level of adherence to healthy behaviors, greater earning capacity and net wealth, greater satisfaction in relationship relationships, and a greater dedication to the relationships. Additionally, studies have found that, after correcting depression, the feeling of purpose predicts the risk of dying and walking speed.
Not only are those with a strong feeling of purpose, they are more organized in their actions each day, but those with a purpose tend to be happy. They also place a high value on those in their lives, which can lead to greater relationships.
How to Become a More Purposeful Person
With this information in mind, it’s now time to revisit the issue of how you can set yourself in the right direction for improving your sense of meaning within your own life. It’s, according to Pfund, one that’s an “uphill battle,” but it’s a battle worth fighting.
Start your journey by going through the information on the questionnaires with a sense of purpose. If you reassess your life, did you realize that your life was not heading in a specific direction? Do you find your day-to-day tasks to be a jumble of routine chores?
If yes, consider how you could improve at least one or two activities you regularly engage in which could gain significance. If the activities you engage in involve feeding your pets, family members, or yourself, look at how they help you live a healthier life. Incorporating a bit of awareness into the equation can aid. Be focused on the task at hand, making it a “presentation” of the food as attractive as possible, and take pleasure in watching the outcome when the people (or pets) you’re feeding take in their food.
