‘
Why am I doing this?’ We probably ask ourselves this question on a fairly regular basis when we are challenging ourselves to achieve something, or meet a goal. And the real answer to that question is the key to our success. But we don’t just want the short superficial answer. We need to get to the real answer, the deep rooted reason why you get out of bed in a morning.
Knowing your ‘why’ will be key to every success you have in life including achieving your health and fitness goals. If you know your ‘why’ this is what you will revert back to, every time the going gets tough and it will give you the strength and motivation to keep going.
Purpose
If you have a clear sense of purpose in life, you can link your goals and aspirations to it. If you link those goals and aspirations to your true purpose, your ‘why’, then you are more likely to achieve them, because they have a deeper meaning.
Finding your purpose can be tricky for some, and it isn’t the same for everyone. One person’s purpose might be to care for others, another person’s might be to raise lots of money for charity, for someone else it might be to save the planet.
When you do realise what your purpose is, it’s like a light bulb moment. It is the moment in time when it suddenly all becomes clear. This is the one thing that above everything else is so important to you, and means you will sacrifice practically anything to be it. It can come like a bolt of out of the blue, or it can be something that you find after doing some soul searching.
The benefit of identifying your purpose is that you have something to latch onto when the going gets tough. If that purpose comes from a positive emotional place, it is more deeply ingrained than a superficial goal and you are therefore more likely to find the strength to carry on. However that’s not to say that what might start out as a ‘superficial’ purpose, won’t have some deep rooted emotional connection, you just need to dig a little deeper to get to the real reason that you want to do this.
I have written this so many times before, but my purpose is always to be a good role model for my children, be the best Mum that I can be, ensure the kids grow up strong and healthy, with a healthy body image. I wasn’t particularly conscious of it until I started Be Strong with Rick and really started to soul search about why I got fitter and healthier and lost weight. It was totally subconscious. But now I have recognised my purpose and defined it, it absolutely drives me forward in everything I do. I think now that I have identified it, it has given me more strength to keep going, and doing what I am doing, because everything I do l can link back. It drives me to be the best version of myself, as much as I possibly can. That’s not to say I don’t fall down occasionally, because I do, we all do we are human – but it absolutely gives me the drive to get back up again.
Connecting to your true purpose gives you your most powerful source of motivation. It gives you your reason to wake up every day. It gives you strength when times are hard and it gives you the reason to get back up when you fall off the wagon.
Why should I find my purpose for weight loss?
Your purpose is more than a goal. It is a deep rooted emotionally driven motive. Finding your purpose and keeping that in mind helps you to stay focused and committed to achieving your goals.
Identifying your purpose motivates you to give up parts of the old lifestyle, that you know you need to stop, but don’t really want to. Identifying your purpose will give you the impetus to stop buying rubbish from the supermarket ‘for the kids/guests/husband/dog/neighbours’ aunties’ sister-in-law’ when really it is you that wants it. It makes the new lifestyle more appealing than the old lifestyle. It makes you want to do this, enough to give up those old damaging behaviours, in order to get to where you want to be.
Identifying your purpose, could be an absolute game-changer for you. It could be the line in the sand, that defines the end of the old and the beginning of the new. When you identify your purpose, it gives you the impetus and motivation to take action, and to keep on taking action forever. Because this will be forever, it won’t be till you hit a particular number on the scales, or you summit that mountain, or lose those crutches, because this continues until our dying day, because if we don’t continue we just go back to where we were.
How can I find my purpose?
To find your purpose, you need to set some time aside – probably about 10 – 15 minutes without any distractions, then you can really think clearly and focus on what you really want.
First of all, you need to know what your interim goal is. It would be better if that goal is something specific, then you can measure your progress from where you are now to where you want to finish. So that might be: ‘I want to be 11 stones’.
Then you need to ask yourself why you want to be 11 stones – and for every answer you give yourself, ask why that is. The more why’s you ask, the deeper you get into your psyche and the closer to your purpose you get. It can get quite uncomfortable when we keep asking ourselves these questions, but don’t be afraid of the answers, because when you find the answers, that is when the magic can start to happen.
Your goal might not be weight loss related, it might be more about what your body can achieve, for example ‘I want to climb the highest mountain in England.’ or, ‘I want to be able to walk unaided’ But still the path is the same, ask yourself why, until you get to that deep, emotional reason, and that is your purpose.
Finding your purpose can mean that you need to do some real soul searching, and deep thinking, which you might not have had time to do before, or you might not have felt comfortable doing. But once you unlock your purpose, that is when the magic will start to happen. Your purpose will give you the reason to stay on track, or to get back up quick, once you fall off the wagon.
If the answers to your questions are negative, or centre on negative feelings, flip it on its head. For example if you have reached the answer ‘I don’t want to be the person that doesn’t achieve things anymore’, flip it round – ‘I want to be the person that everyone thinks will achieve what they say they will. I want to be the person that everyone believes in.’ That is much more powerful and uplifting when you need to revert back to it, to give yourself a reason to keep going or get going again. If you focus on a negative purpose, when you fall down, you will just give in and that negative purpose becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. However if your purpose is positive, just thinking about that positivity will give you a boost, and that mental strength to get back up and carry on.
Write your purpose down and display it somewhere that you look at every day. Whether that’s a message in the steam on the bathroom mirror, or your screen saver on your phone or computer at work – a regular reminder will give you the focus you need to keep going.
This week!
Tell us what your purpose is! We really want to hear from you on this one!
You can tell us what your purpose is here! We will really look forward to reading them, and sharing them, if you allow, so that you can inspire others.
Download our motivational word art and display it somewhere that you will see every day – Why not make your own with your purpose included?