Living with Purpose

And how to discover yours

‘For a man to achieve all that is demanded of him, he must regard himself as greater than he is.’

—       Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Two enduring themes of my new book, Emboldened: On Finding the Fire to Keep Going When All Seems Lost, are passion and purpose. Passion is self-explanatory, while the meaning of ‘having a purpose’ is not always as clear.

Yet, having a strong sense of purpose is what creates an extraordinary life, one that is lived boldly and courageously. In Emboldened I explain it this way:

It’s important not to get a purpose confused with a goal. We can have a goal to make a certain amount of money, get married and own a house, but it’s not a purpose. Goals can help us focus and bring us satisfaction when we achieve them, but they don’t embolden us the way a true sense of purpose does. That’s why so many people who have every material advantage to constitute a happy life are often miserable. They have no strong reason to be here and make the most of it. Purpose in old age is what keeps people active and interested. Without it, we fade away before our time.

We sense our purpose when our natural abilities and passions collide, producing feelings of energy and aliveness in our spirits. We are on the right path, and we know it.

A strong sense of purpose gives us the resilience to push through life’s difficulties.

To illustrate the point, I share the story of Virginia Hall, an American woman considered to be one of the most successful Allied agents in the French Resistance during the Second World War. From the time she was a young woman, she felt destined to contribute to world peace. She studied to be a diplomat but was constantly thwarted because she was a woman and an amputee. Yet, she never gave up and eventually she became one of the most effective Allied intelligence officers in France and had a front-row seat in stopping Nazism.

I knew from an early age that I had the ability to encourage others. People often said that they felt inspired after spending time with me. It’s something that naturally comes out in my writing, even in my fiction. I embolden people by illuminating the human condition and telling stories of resilience. I also knew from a young age that my purpose in life was to help animals.

But not everybody who has a sense of purpose was born knowing their path. Often people develop a sense of purpose after a life-changing experience, sometimes a traumatic one like the loss of a child and sometimes something positive, like developing a fascination with Renaissance art and wanting to share its beauty with the world by conducting art tours to Italy. After an extraordinary experience – either painful or pleasurable – we find we have a larger, deeper view of life. Our heart cracks open and we have an urge to give something back to the world. But rather than giving out of martyrdom or people-pleasing, and depleting themselves in the process, people imbued with a sense of purpose seem to have endless amounts of resources and generosity. The more they give, the more they receive.

Having a purpose is how we contribute to the goodness of life and the advancement of all other lives on this beautiful planet.

But having said that, our purpose doesn’t have to be earth-shattering or change the world on a large scale. It can be as simple as collecting personal care products for homeless people or volunteering with others to plant more trees in our local area. I see us all as knitters working on a patchwork blanket together. Each of us has the responsibility of knitting a square. Our individual contributions to the betterment of life may seem small and insignificant on their own, but when sewn together they produce something truly beautiful.

I believe purpose comes out of having a deep reverence for life. Perhaps I knew my purpose so early because I had a mother who taught me that life was a gift and not to take it for granted. She was a White Russian born in China, a story I tell in Emboldened. As a young child, she saw many atrocities during the Japanese occupation. She also witnessed abject poverty and babies being thrown into rivers to drown because their parents couldn’t afford to feed another mouth. It was because of those experiences that my mother instilled in me how lucky I was to be born in Australia. And with that sense of gratitude, I instinctively felt that I was meant to use that privilege for a good purpose.

If you don’t know what your purpose is but would like to discover it, I believe the fastest route to find it is to focus passionately on what you are grateful for in your life. This expands your consciousness and lifts your mind above the mundane. If you cultivate that quality in your character, then a meaningful sense of purpose and a desire to contribute to life will naturally find its way to you.

My book, Emboldened: On Finding the Fire to Keep Going When All Seems Lost is available now:

Emboldened By Belinda Alexandra

316KB ∙ PDF file

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Read A Sample Chapter

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For more buying options please see my website

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Better Reading: Be Better

Need some inspiration and motivation today? Jane Tara of Better Reading and I discuss some of the major themes of my new book, Emboldened: On Finding the Fire to Keep Going When All Seems Lost. We focus on passion and purpose. Listen to it here:

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My Books in Chronological Order

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Emboldened is now available in Audio
(Digital and Audiobook)

I’ve been getting great feedback on Caroline Lee’s wonderful narration of Emboldened: On Finding the Fire to Keep Going When All Seems Lost.

Caroline Lee is an award-winning Australian actor who you will recognise from her roles in the film The Dressmaker's Secret and the popular TV series Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries. She is certainly one of Australia’s best-loved audiobook narrators.

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UPCOMING EVENTS

SYDNEY

❦ WEDNESDAY, July 26^th
Sutherland Library In Conversation with Anna Loder

❦ THURSDAY, AUGUST 10^th
Hornsby Library Belinda Alexandra in Conversation with Michaela Kalowski

❦ WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 30^th
Belinda Alexandra In Conversation with Lynne Allister of Dymocks Rouse Hill

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I’ll be sending out another newsletter next Tuesday looking at the topic of rage.

Until then be kind to yourself,

Love Belinda XX