Discovering My Life Mission
Introduction Welcome to Discovering My Life Mission! My hope is that the journey this workbook represents will be enjoyable, enlightening, and lifechanging. This workbook is the result of a self-created process that I walked though in 1992 at a stage of life that felt aimless. Nothing was particularly wrong at the time. Perhaps because of that, I was even more disturbed by my discontentment, sensing that I was wasting my life as it flew by right before my eyes. The process took me several months as I dug down deep, making up as I went along the questions and reflections that would help me get to the core that otherwise seemed elusive. After many hours of reflection and soul-searching the process finally came together and I was able to crystalize in words my Life Mission, the unique intersection of who I am and what I am called to do. The moment created a profound Yes deep in my soul. Since then, while my Life Mission has been refined, the core statement has never changed. I could have never anticipated the difference that those months of discovery would make in my life. My Life Mission has both guided me through the maze of life decisions that inevitably come, and acted as a filter as I decided between yes and no in my life. More importantly, my Life Mission has helped me live a life of meaning and contentment. I have made plenty of mistakes along the way, but as I consistently come back to my Life Mission, I find that I do not stray too far off the path. I am so thankful for that. My hope, my prayer, for you is that the process on which you are embarking will have a similar impact on your life. I believe life is to be lived on purpose. Finding your purpose, your Mission, may not be easy or quick, but the effort will be well worth your time! Happy Discovering!!! Tommy Thompson
Instructions This workbook is divided into three parts. Part One is instructional. It lays the groundwork for what a Life Mission is, why we should go to all of the work to discover our Life Mission, and then addresses the barriers we have to moving forward on the journey. Parts Two and Three address how we go about discovering our Life Mission. Part Two involves detailed Personal Assessment, which is the groundwork for delving deep. Part Three dives into the nuts and bolts of turning our reflections and understanding into specific words that uniquely describe us and can guide us as we move forward. If at all possible, work through this workbook in larger chunks of time. Our mind naturally relaxes and goes deeper when we give it time. If we are distracted, either by what happened moments ago, or what is right around the corner, then the quality of our thinking reflects our distraction. The instructions are simple and mostly self-explanatory. The Reflections at the end of Part One and Two are for those who want to take their time and process the content of each section. The Reflections are optional and will not be referred to later in the process. The detailed responses and steps in Part Two and Three are not optional. Personal style will dictate whether you respond with short, staccato answers or long flowing responses. Either way is fine. Remember though that we get out what we put into the process. Lazy, quick responses will result in imprecise, less meaningful results. The one exception to the mandatory work of Part Two and Three is the section labeled External Assessments. While these assessments are helpful and can provide distinct insights that you might otherwise miss, they are not necessary for the end result to be valid. Use these assessments if you have already completed them in the past or simply want to delve even deeper into self-understanding. Finally, consider this journey a work-in-progress. Your first pass may not get you all the way home. You may have to come back a few times and process or mull on your discoveries. I would particularly encourage you to talk with trusted others about what they see. We all have blind spots. We all find at times that others know us even better than we know ourselves. Welcome input. For some, the process will be quick and decisive. For others, the process will be measured and reflective. When you get to your Yes! the results will be worth the work!
My Life Mission Part One Understanding Life Mission What is Life Mission? Life Mission is a concise description coming out of a thoughtful, intentional discernment process of who I am created to be, and what I am created to do. o Life Mission incorporates clearly your passions, emphasizes your strengths and talents, and takes seriously your weaknesses. When completed, it should deeply resonate with your soul. o Life Mission is not an exercise in self-elevation. It helps us get in touch with our authentic selves, putting aside ego and the demands of those around us. o Life Mission always ends up being a call to serve in some manner, even if that service is in leading others or draws attention and notoriety. o Life Mission does not need to be grandiose. Most Life Missions will be lived quietly behind the scenes. The key is that it is an authentic expression of our deepest longings and giftedness. A Life Mission Statement needs to be personal, descriptive, and a unique statement about you. Reflection What difference would it make for you to know your Life Mission?
Why should I develop Life Mission? o Your life matters! You have strength to offer to the world. Even if you do not feel it, the world needs what you uniquely have to give! o Developing our Life Mission helps assure that down the road you won t look back regretting that you have wasted precious years. o Life Mission becomes a North Star, keeping me pointed in the right direction. o Life Mission becomes a filter to help me determine what is important to me and not important to me, what I should do and not do, where I should spend my time and not spend my time. o Without Life Mission, I tend to live my life in a reactionary way, dependent on my passions, feelings, and needs in the moment. A Life Mission Statement creates intention in my life. Reflections Why have you decided to work on your Life Mission now?
Barriers to developing your Life Mission. o I do not believe there is anything unique about me. Modern science clearly affirms each person s uniqueness. While there are commonalities that make us all human, we differ in millions of distinct ways. There is no one like you! Feelings so not equal facts. Our feelings of being ordinary do not change the extraordinary uniqueness of each person. You are extraordinary and unique! o It feels arrogant to claim a life mission. Beware of false humility that attempts to appear small. Being great or small is irrelevant. Being authentic is the goal of finding our Life Mission. o I don t know where to begin. Follow the guide here. You may not always know the purpose of the process, but follow it anyway. This guide will help you if you don t know where to begin. o I don t think it will make any difference. We instinctively understand that organizations need to have a purpose or else they will operate aimlessly. The same is true for you. While you may not feel the impact of living without mission today, a life without purpose will one day be felt to be an empty life. o It s really hard work. Most things that are valuable take hard work. At the same time, the process will be energizing as you come to see yourself through different eyes. o I don t have time. There is no rush. Take your time, but make the time to move forward. o It s too late for me.
Some of the greatest contributions in all history came from people very late in their lives. Even if you are later in life and have never addressed mission, it is not too late. Even if your life has taken a major turn and you are starting over, it is not too late. Reflection What are your barriers to developing your Life Mission?
Part Two Personal Assessment The unexamined life is not worth living. Plato Who am I uniquely created to be? What are you passionate about? What excites you? What upsets you? What six words would I use to describe your personality? What are three challenges arising from your personality? 1) 2) 3) What do you really like about yourself?
o What is your top love language? I feel love most through 1) Quality Time 2) Gifts 3) Words of Affirmation 4) Acts of Service 5) Touch _ o What have you learned from these reflections about yourself? What stands out? What am I uniquely called me to do? o What are your strengths?
o What are three specific experiences in which you felt the greatest sense of pride and achievement? 1) 2) 3) o What do these successes tell you about yourself? o What do others tell you that you are best at? o Are you a leader, manager, or follower?
o Do you like working independently or with supervision? o What comes really easily to you? o What are your greatest talents? o If money were no object, I would Why?
External Assessments: (optional) o Your Myers Briggs type is: o What does this tell you about yourself? o Your top 5 strengths in Strengths Finder are: o 1) o 2) o 3) o 4) o 5) o What does this tell you about yourself? o Your Littauer Temperament is: o What does this tell you about yourself?
o Your top 2 Love Languages are: o What does this tell you about yourself?
Part Three: Developing Your Life Mission When you discover your mission, you will feel its demand. It will fill you with enthusiasm and a burning desire to get to work on it. W. Clement Stone o Characteristics of a strong Life Mission. o It describes me uniquely. o It is not too general, and not too specific. It is descriptive enough to guide me, but not so constrictive to limit me. o It is evolving, continually being tweaked, continually being refined. o Sample Life Missions: o One Sentence Sample: I am called me to teach in all avenues of my life, first through being a great listener, next by being a constant learner, and only after listening and learning, by teaching wherever I feel called. o Paragraph Sample: I am called to teach. My call is not limited to formally being a teacher, nor is it limited to one area of teaching. My mission is to be a teacher of life. This includes teaching about spiritual matters, interpersonal dealings, life planning, business, hobbies, or any other area I feel called to teach. As a teacher, my priorities are twofold. First, I must be an excellent and constant student. I must always be seeking to absorb knowledge and life experiences. I can only teach that which I have learned. I must be constantly committed to bettering myself, broadening myself, deepening myself. Second, I must be keenly in tune to listen and discern what I should give my time to learning and where I should give myself to teach.
o One Phrase Sample: Listen, Learn, Teach, Learn, Listen o Having done the assessment work above, my first draft, one sentence life Mission would be: o What do I like about this draft? o What needs more describing? o What words really resonate with me in this draft? o What words/phrases need tweaking? o How might I consolidate this to a phrase? o What does my spouse/best friend think about this?
o After mulling on this, and considering the feedback from those closest to me, my second draft Life Mission would be: o Live with this for a week. Is it resonating with me? Is it clarifying for me? What would I change? o My Life Mission is: