Any advice for connecting dots to find life purpose

[Keepmovingforward]

Hey there,

First post here, thanks for any time and insights you can provide, I really appreciate it.

I enjoy Leo’s videos and have yet to take the course (mainly due to having not long purchased Tony Robbin’s Ultimate Edge programme which I highly recommend) The reason I’ve joined the forums is following this TED talk by Steve Johnson 

- he describes how the community fostered in the first cafes of Britain helped the development and creation of major and innovative ideas - I’m hoping these forums can do a similar thing for myself, and hopefully I can help others too.

 

So I’m 29. 30 later this year. For better or worse I decided to use my twenties as a question mark decade, following the advice of (then not under fire for sexual harassment claims) Dustin Hoffman. And creatively there were some incredible highs and lows. I’ve actually managed to work pretty consistently as an actor - in theatre, theatre in education, corporate role play, community theatre, children’s theatre, short films, commercials. The highs felt amazing, the lows not so much (doing work purely to pay the bills, which often was creatively unfulfilling, and often times embarrassing due to poor nature of scripts, circumstances etc). Along the way I put off the lifelong fear of giving music a shot and learnt guitar and taught myself to sing, both of which give me a lot of pleasure too. I developed a passion for writing (songwriting, journaling), self development, cooking, fitness. My work has allowed me to travel all over Europe, open myself up to lots of incredible experiences (including  life altering experiments with psychedelics) and develop and grow in ways I never could have imagined. I’m happily married, and my wife and I love each other deeply.

And yet - the question mark at the end of this decade!...

 

I want to connect all the dots of these experiences into finding my life purpose. I love acting when everything is working but often it isn’t - its a lifestyle which doesn’t exactly grant someone with a lot of autonomy. You are very often asked to give your personal power away, and often for causes you don’t believe in. And a lot of the work I’ve done is rooted in the past - I love Shakespeare, and live performance, whether that’s theatre, or playing music, but I’m also on the lookout to innovate, to move towards a new frontier, engage with the fascinating technologies and new mediums that Shakespeare, or Bob Dylan, or many of my other creative heroes didn’t have access to (the internet, virtual reality, video games),  to engage with new philosophical horizons (eg the singularity) I wish  to empower myself so I may empower others too. To enjoy life completely, and to live in balance and harmony - to create, not consume, to give, not take.

I’m super grateful for the experiences I’ve been able to have - I’ve worked hard for many of them, and made some tough sacrifices, and there’s been a lot of grace and good fortune at work too. But, I feel like I’m on the cusp of a breakthrough, a way of amalgamating my experiences and lessons thus far to create something new, and to live a life with purpose, meaning, and vitality...But just need some help figuring out what that could be. 

Thank you guys, I really appreciate any response. Apologies for the meandering yet hopefully, relatively clear first post,

Keepmovingforward  

 

 

[Elisabeth]

2 hours ago, Keepmovingforward said:

I’m super grateful for the experiences I’ve been able to have - I’ve worked hard for many of them, and made some tough sacrifices, and there’s been a lot of grace and good fortune at work too. But, I feel like I’m on the cusp of a breakthrough, a way of amalgamating my experiences and lessons thus far to create something new, and to live a life with purpose, meaning, and vitality...But just need some help figuring out what that could be. 

Thank you guys, I really appreciate any response. Apologies for the meandering yet hopefully, relatively clear first post,

I wanted to respond, but I'm unclear on your question

No one else but you can have an idea what 'living life with purpose, meaning and vitality' entails for you.

Do take the course if you feel like it, you'll get plenty of great questions to contemplate from it.

[BjarkeT]

i would say just get good at something interesting and meaning full if you go with cal newports approach (he argues that any path that seems interesting should be equally rewarding or at least something similar)

Edited January 17, 2018 by BjarkeT

[Amadeusz]

Seems that you want to be mainly an actor,   You know you could work for yourself as an actor. Maybe you try to approach it in too generic way, find your style?  

[Keepmovingforward]

Thanks for all of your responses. 

@ElisabethI guess my question should really be - do you guys have any tips or methods for connecting the dots, for creating new links in thinking? 

@BjarkeT thanks for recommending Cal Newport, I’m checking his stuff out now and enjoying what I’ve found.

And @Amadeusz think you’ve hit the nail on the head. Cheers