August 29, 2021
Perhaps, you opened this article because of the title and the name Simon on it. Maybe you thought that it's the admin's name. But no, I am not referring to the admin Simon, I am referring to Simon Sinek.
He's an optimist and a motivator I look up to because of his motivational words and his contributions in inspiring millions of people across the world through his motivational talks, books, and videos. Some of his best-selling books include Start With Why, Leaders Eat Last, Together is Better, and The Infinite Game.
The last video I watched about his inspirational advice moved me to the realization and made me contemplate my real purpose of working hard.
What is really my purpose? Is it to wake up every day to do my job? Or to fulfill something Bigger?
As per Simon, one of the mistakes people make is they think purpose comes from their job. Doing one job and another, until they get tired or retired. Upon losing their jobs, they would feel no sense of purpose because they've associated their self-worth with the job they did. But then the real purpose is not your job that you wake up to do every day, your purpose is something BIGGER.
This somewhat hits me because all I think about is waking up every day to fulfill my duty at work for the sake of getting money. And I guess it's not only me who is thinking the same. Living in this demanding world makes our minds think about only getting a job because we can not survive without a single penny in our pockets.
As years pass by, the world is growing exponentially as well as the demands, expenses, prices, and everything. That's the main reason why many of us are diving into a job that is out of our line. Because what we only think about is money can suffice everything. And we are all doing the wrong thing following the wrong path.
And now you might be asking yourself as well, what is really my purpose in this world? To perform the tasks at work, or to perform my real duty in this world?
As I have learned from Simon Sinek,
For the sake of surviving in this perilous world, we tend to follow the path that is not supposed to be ours. We tend to choose things we don't love for the sake of other people. We tend to sacrifice our own happiness just to provide for the needs of other people. We tend to cross the unknown road and sometimes get lost in the middle of our journey. We tend to miss the boat where we are supposed to hop in because we consider other people and other things in life.
And we tend to do work that is out of our passion. Or should I say, do we even know our real passion or are we just going along with the flow of life?
Because most of the time, we are only doing things for the sake of getting what we need, and not what we want. It may be a practical mindset, but have you ever ask yourself about your real purpose in this world? Because I always ask myself about it especially during the times when I am alone, facing a blank wall, contemplating many things in my life and about this huge world, and thinking about our real purposes, and if we already have done something BIG.
Because of this, I can say that there are millions of people in this world that are stressed because they are working hard for something they don't even love. And I must admit that at some point in my life, I also work hard for things that I don't love, because of the sense of responsibility. That's the same reason for other people.
However, Simon is right. We are just stressing ourselves. Why not pursue our passion and the things we love?
Remember that we set off for a journey for a reason. And our real passion is the fire that lights our way. So if what we are doing is not our real passion, that fire that is lighting our way will soon be diminished and our path will turn darker and darker until we can't see light anymore.
Related article: Purpose Is The Reason Of Your Journey, Passion Is The Fire That Lights Your Way
And in the dark place, we might just stumble onto things that will hinder us to to step forward or go back to where we started. But we always have the choice to continue until we reach the place where the light is. We always have a choice to light again the fire that fuels our journey. We always have a choice to choose our real passion over things we don't love. Because if we choose the wrong one, it's still us who will suffer in the end.
But in case you are lost in the dark and don't know how to light the match, here are other lessons I've learned from Simon for us to find the spark and bring our spark to life.
Go after the things we want
In our journey in life, we will encounter obstacles in our way that we need to surpass. If we really need to get what we want, we should not focus on the obstacles, rather, we should think and do something on how to surpass the obstacles to get the thing we want. Think positively in a negative situation. We can do anything just to surpass the obstacles, we can step on it, jump on it, climb on it, or push it. We shouldn't fear its height, because everything can be resolved if we just believe in ourselves and put more determination to surpass any obstacles in life.
Take accountability for our actions
Sometimes, we are the problem but we can't just see it or admit it, because of our huge ego and pride. We always thought we are doing the right thing and we don't listen to other people's words and advice. We just continue doing things we thought are right even though the consequences are negative.
Take care of each other
Having a strong body and mind isn't the only aspect we need to achieve success. Because in this world, no man is an island. Time will always come that we will be needing others. And in any battle in life, the only way to win is to help each other. The world is a perilous and huge place and we can't just survive from everything alone. We always need each other. So if someone offers us a hand, we should not hesitate to reach out. And if we see someone who needs help, we should not hesitate to reach a helping hand.
There's nothing wrong with giving help, and there is nothing wrong with asking for help. And just like what Simon said,
Until such time that we'll say that we don't know what to do anymore and we are being stuck in the dark. By that time, the people who love us will rush in to offer a helping hand.
Exercise humility and gratitude
This part is truly happening in reality. People who gain fame, fortune, and position are more respected by others and they are being treated special compared to ordinary people. People will even do things voluntarily for them without them asking to do such things. Some of the examples are the politicians, the artists, the bosses, and other well-known personalities. They are being treated differently by other people.
However, once their fame, fortune, position, and name fade, people will treat them normally just like how they treat other ordinary people. They won't open doors for them or treat them special, because they are already as ordinary as them. This only shows that people only respect the position or title the person has and not the person himself. The sad truth of reality.
Always remember that we can accept and enjoy all the perks, but be grateful for them and know that they are not for us forever. Those things are just temporary sources of happiness and fame, and won't last a lifetime.
Be Patient
This is the most important thing that the young generation should also learn.
As I always say to others, success won't grow overnight. Everything takes time. If you want to reach a summit, you should take the arduous trail of the mountain and endure the pain and obstacles to reach the summit. If you want to cross the sea, you should take a boat and sail with courage and strength, conquer the big waves and strong winds to cross the sea. So if you want to attain success, you should grind and strive harder, follow your passion for you to see the right path, and achieve whatever things you want to.
Author's Notes:
This world is indeed a perilous place and so we need to do anything for the sake of survival. And people who have burdens of responsibilities on their shoulders tend to follow the wrong path, choose works that are out of their lines, sacrifice their own happiness for the sake of other people's happiness, and they tend to lose their real passion.
We are working hard and stressing ourselves out about doing things we don't love. However, we always have a choice to follow our passion and the things that we truly love. Always remember that it is our passion that fuels us to pursue and light our journey in life.
Our purpose in this world is not just about waking up every day to do the tasks at work. Our real purpose in this world is to fulfill our duty as a human. And a part of that is going after what we want, not what others want us to have. And by going after what we want, we should always take accountability for our actions. And sometimes, we should listen to what other people are saying because not all the time we are right. We should take care of each other and we should not hesitate to lend a helping hand to those who are in need.
Moreover, we should not hesitate as well to ask for help in times that we badly need it. Because in this perilous and huge world, what we need to survive is not ourselves alone, but others as well. Most importantly, if we really want to achieve something, we should be PATIENT. .Things won't grow over time, just like money won't grow on trees. To achieve something we truly love, we have to do the right thing, strive harder, conquer every obstacle in our way, trust the process and ourselves, and most especially, give all the burdens to Him to make your baggage lighter and make your journey easier and faster.
And always remember not to do things that will give you stress, but the things that you love - your PASSION.
I hope you learned something from this article. Thanks for reading.
Mas maganda po talaga na gawin ang nakaka pasaya po sa atin para kung mag kamale paman atles wala kang pag sisisi sa ginawa mo. Dahil maikle lang ang oras at minsan pa hindi na tin na mamalayan tumatanda na pala tayo at lahat nang gusto na ting gawin baka hindi na natin magawa.