I Wish to Be Useful

Most good novel and movie plots portray the main character fighting overwhelming obstacles, nearly to his death, to accomplish some great overriding purpose.

We love to see the hero achieve the goal to which he has so fully committed. We’re happy when he saves his child from the evil stepfather, or saves the world from tyrants, meteors, or alien beings.

We thrill to see the underdog defeat her archrival for the championship, or the girl find the guy of her dreams even though she hated him earlier.

Each hero has a main overriding purpose that drives her past every obstacle to achieve her desired end—no matter how difficult.

Contrast that vision with one where lines of beaten down 9 to 5 workers slog to their jobs with slumped shoulders, arms hanging limply to their sides. Each expressionless automaton waits in line to drop his card into the time clock and plop glumly into his chair in an endless row of cubicles.

With which figure do you most relate; the movie hero or the blank-faced 9 to 5 worker?

I suspect that your life falls somewhere between these two exaggerations. 

These two scenarios differ in that the movie heroes let nothing stop them. They believe that their aim MUST be achieved—they feel a strong sense of mission. 

Some 9-to-5′ers just need to show up, do their small, unimportant tasks, and go home. They live to leave their work.

Those who MUST accomplish their end know that their task is so important that they can’t let anything stop them! They feel driven by a higher purpose—significance.

The key to great achievement is finding that higher purpose—the sense that what we are doing is so important it MUST be done.

For those of us with families, our greatest significance comes from our work in our families. By raising our children well, we make our greatest contribution to society. Fathers and mothers teach, nurture, and mold our society one child at a time.

That said, we can also find wonderful significance through our work and our contributions to our communities.

Say you work as an insurance agent. How do you view your purpose? Do you sell insurance, or do you serve others by protecting their property and helping them feel secure that their loved ones will be cared for after they are gone.

Do you work in order to pay your bills, or to build wealth?

For each of your goals and tasks, find the higher purpose. Why must you achieve them? Make a list of your reasons. Who is counting on you to accomplish them?

Do your purposes make you move past any obstacles in your path? Do you feel you MUST achieve? 

In your work, think often about your consumers. How will their lives improve because of your efforts? Do you believe in your product or service? 

If you cannot find significance in your work you can either change your career or find your higher purpose in activities outside of work. Discover ways to find your significance through volunteer service opportunities. Your community needs you.

What will make you act with the same passion as your favorite movie hero? What higher purpose will drive you to your goals?

Related Quotes

There is one quality that one must possess to win, and that is definiteness of purpose, the knowledge of what one wants, and a burning desire to possess it.
Napoleon Hill

We all have two choices: We can make a living or we can design a life. Jim Rohn

Happiness comes when you believe in what you are doing, know what you are doing, and live what you are doing. Brian Tracy

Anybody who believes in something without reservation believes that this thing is right and should be, has the stamina to meet obstacles and overcome them. Golda Meir

I see so many of my kind who have gone mad for want of something to do. Florence Nightingale

I only wish I could work to some purpose….I have no right to these easy comfortable days and our poor men suffering and dying thirsting in this hot sun and I so quiet here in want of nothing. Clara Barton

I love sporting goods stores. I enjoy browsing through the gear for baseball, cycling, camping, kayaking, hiking, golf, and other outdoorsy stuff. My wife Kathy likes the clothes.

Recently a huge new store opened not far from our home. This gigantic store features dozens of departments spread over two stories. Entering the store, the customer sees the team wear to the left and golfing gear to the right. The designers built the store to force the customer to wind through the various departments before coming upon the items they want to purchase.

A full-sized Ferris wheel towers over the center of the first level. For a dollar the customer can purchase a ten-minute ride. As the wheel lifts the customer above the first floor merchandise and over the second level to up near the ceiling, the customer gains a new perspective and can locate every department of the store.

From the perch above the crowded merchandise racks he gains a greater appreciation for the massiveness of the store. He can see where he needs to go to get what he wants. His vision expands.

Sometimes as we browse through life we can lose sight of the visions of greatness open to us. We can become so involved in the here and now, the daily tasks of making a living and raising a family, that we lose sight of why we do them.

Sometimes in our doing, we concentrate so much on the “how to” we forget the “why to”. 

Developing vision entails seeing the big picture–the why. Visionaries see the “why” and the eventual outcome before they start to find the “how”. They see the outcome before it is apparent and they focus on that outcome as they work their way toward it.

When we forget the “whys” we can easily become distracted and veer away from our ultimate visions. When faced with challenge, those who know why they want to succeed will press past the opposition and overcome it. Those not in touch with their ultimate motives glide with the flow and lose their drive when challenged.

How can we insure that we develop the vision we need to succeed? 

Determine why you want to achieve your aim

As you set goals and make plans to achieve them, identify and record why you want to achieve them. You may identify these reasons for achieving a goal: the joy of conquest; the gaining of wealth; the pursuit of wisdom; the improvement of health; the satisfaction of serving others; the honor of serving a great cause; or the desire to please a spouse or parent.

When you feel like backsliding on your goal quest focus on your reasons for wanting to achieve it. This can help give you the strength to keep striving.

Find daily inspiration
Study inspirational material every day. Some of your study may focus on how to perform, but you can add material that reminds you why to achieve. This will keep you motivated and inspired to focus on your vision.

Books by qualified authors, inspirational tapes and CDs, and scriptures can fill this great need.

Frequent escapes
Conferences, vacations and other escape opportunities can help you tune your mind and can help you remember your reasons for setting your goals. Hours in the car, airport, plane, bicycle or tent can provide great opportunities for deep reflection and evaluation. 

Keep a journal
Recording your feelings and your daily activities can help you remember why you want to overcome your challenges and reach your goals.

Reminders
Desk pictures, passwords, index cards and other reminders can help you focus on what you want to achieve and why.

Raise your sights, elevate your vantage point, and lift your vision. As you do so you will improve your life.

Related Quotes

All growth is a leap in the dark, a spontaneous, unpremeditated act without benefit of experience. Henry Miller

The biggest lesson I have ever learned is the stupendous importance of what we think. If I knew what you think, I would know what you are, for your thoughts make you what you are; by changing our thoughts, we can change our lives. Dale Carnegie

You are the fruit of the thoughts you have planted and nourished. If you want a better harvest, you must plant better thoughts. Robert Allen

Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional glance towards the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point. Harold B. Melchart

High achievement always takes place in a framework of high expectation. Jack Kinder

Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstances. Bruce Barton

Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved. William Jennings Bryan

We succeed only as we identify in life, or in war, or in anything else, a single overriding objective, and make all other considerations bend to that one objective. Dwight Eisenhower