"Implant" Your Purpose Statement (or any positive attitude or belief)

Necessary wisdom

Once we have a working purpose statement, we need some way of making it an integral part of our life so that it is able to influence and shape the way we think.

Motivation speakers and human observers have for decades been offering us ideas and ways of changing our “mind-set” so we approach life with more positive or helpful attitudes. As neurologists have learnt more about the way our brains work and change, these ideas have been refined and tuned to the point where scientists now know the steps involved in effectively “re-wiring” our brains or changing neural pathways. We can all use of some of the simpler forms of these techniques to train our minds to “see” and “notice” things quite differently. I have summarized seven of the most common and effective of these strategies into the acronym, “Implant”.

The “I.M.P.L.A.N.T.” Method

These seven types of strategies can be used individually or in combination with other strategies to help implant new purpose statements, assumptions, beliefs, values, attitudes, knowledge and ways of seeing things into our long-term memories. They will then be more readily available to us throughout our day-to-day life.

Some people have warned that these methods are really a form of mild “brain washing” and in some ways, they are. However, the difference here is that we are in control of the process. We choose exactly what we want our brain’s focus to be, we choose the methods, and we choose the extent to which we will use those methods. Our purpose here is to make use of our brain’s ability to focus on, and draw our attention to the things that we choose as important to us.

Here are the seven key strategies related to the idea of making our new purpose statement the focus of our life.

Imagine it

-          Regularly imagine yourself with the new purpose statement as a reality - as a permanent part of your life e.g. Start each day imagining yourself acting as if your purpose statement was being realized in your life. See yourself successfully living with your purpose statement.

Mythologize it

-          See the new purpose statement as a key turning point or the next main phase in your own life story or myth.

-          Develop or create symbols to represent the new purpose statement in your life and display these symbols on computer screens, business cards, posters etc.

-          Develop symbolic rituals and routines that link the new purpose statement to yourself e.g. a ritual to remind yourself of your purpose statement each day.

-          Set up a shrine, altar or monument in honour of your adoption of the new purpose statement.

-          Make a periodical pilgrimage to the place where you first decided to adopt the purpose statement - if such a place exists.

Party it - With Music

-          Celebrate the new purpose statement with a party and music when you first encounter it, and celebrate this event annually e.g. as part of your own birthday celebrations or on the anniversary of encountering the purpose statement

-          Wherever possible, link music with the new purpose statement since studies show that music seems to make our brains more open to new suggestions

-          Try writing a song about the new purpose statement, or relating the purpose statement to songs that you already know

-          Establish a special celebration day in honour of the purpose statement

-          Feel grateful for the new purpose statement at the start of every day e.g. as part of a daily walk

Learn it

-          Learn and revise the words of the purpose statement by heart using emotionally charged memory techniques

-          Learn all you can about the purpose statement as if you were trying to complete research for an important presentation

Act it

-          Act as if the new purpose statement is a day-to-day reality in your life

-          When facing a decision, ask, “What would someone with this purpose statement do in this situation?”

-          Start acting from your purpose statement - do things that someone with your purpose statement would do, even if you do not really feel like doing those things

Notice it

-          Place notices about your new purpose statement on your personal web site or “blog” if you have one

-          Write a poem or song expressing the essence of the new purpose statement

-          Make a sketch or painting showing the new purpose statement in action in your life

-          Wear the purpose statement expressed or symbolized on a T-shirt or windcheater

-          Express the essence of the purpose statement in the types and colours of clothes you wear

-          Make small reminder notices of the purpose statement and display them in your living and work spaces

-          Place the purpose statement on mobile phones, media players and computers as wallpaper, or as a computer screensaver so you notice it every time you use these devices

Talk it

-          Tell significant people in your life that you have adopted the new purpose statement

-          Mention it to others as if the purpose statement was a reality in your life

-          Use positive language whenever you talk about the purpose statement

-          Consider changing the way you speak to reflect your new purpose statement

-          Recite the words of the new purpose statement to yourself on a regular basis e.g. on your daily walk or run.

-          Teach others about the new purpose statement - this is one of the best ways of making it part of you - we are publicly seen as embodying what we teach

-          Tell your partner that you are trying to act according to your new purpose statement and that you would appreciate their support for your efforts

In the above descriptions, you could replace the words, “purpose statement” with any one of these terms: “assumption”, belief”, “value”, “attitude”, or “way of seeing things” as a way of changing the way you think about something. In a later book, I even suggest that you can replace “purpose statement” with the words “loved one” in all but the last suggestion as a way of developing a relationship with a new romantic interest.

Creative responses

CREATIVE RESPONSE (CC): Create daily, weekly and annual customs based on some of the above “IMPLANT” strategies that can continually remind you of your new purpose statement.

*         Choose two or three strategies that you believe can work for you and adapt them to work with your own lifestyle. E.g. you might decide to remind yourself of your purpose statement as part of a daily walk, and you might also decide to review your statement as part of an annual review of your life’s goals.

Creating a Life Purpose Statement

Necessary wisdom

This fourth set of big questions relates to the stage in the Wayfarer myth where the main character clarifies their overall quest and missions. In our life, there are two steps involved in answering these questions. The first is to work out a general idea of our life purpose from the collection of identity elements in our identity chart and the two parts of our identity statement. The second step is to turn this information into a purpose statement - a sentence that attempts to describe our overall life quest, sums up what we really want in life and indicates what we want to do with the rest of our time on earth. In completing these steps, we effectively develop working answers to such questions as, “What is my purpose in life? What am I here for? Where am I going?”

Step one is best completed with one or more trusted friends who are also involved in the process of discovering their identity and purpose, although, if necessary, it can be completed alone. During this stage, we attempt to look objectively at the complete collection of identity elements on our identity chart along with the two parts of our identity statement as if the chart and statements belonged to a stranger. The aim is to come up with a list of suggestions as to how the “chart and statement person” could make a fulfilling, positive contribution to the world given their unique collection of interests, experiences, skills, talents, gifts, needs, desires, and passions.

Once we have a general idea of a life purpose, the idea can be shaped into a purpose statement.

Like all other statements produced in this programme, the statements we will produce in these exercises are not carved in stone and can be tweaked and modified periodically in the future. However, these statements still need to have some permanence so that they serve as an ongoing reminder of what we are on about as a person, and help to direct and give some purpose to, and focus to the decisions we make in life.

Before we start on this process, we need to be aware that there are several traps to avoid when developing “purpose statements”.

Common Problems With Purpose Statements

A common trap is to confuse purpose statements with mission statements. In simple terms, the main difference is that whilst a purpose statement answers questions like, “What is my purpose?” or “What do I want to achieve in life?”, a “mission statement” attempts to answer the questions, “Where am I going?” and “How do I plan to get there? The mission statement is a “smaart” goal so it is more specific and usually implies that something is achievable within a specified period of time e.g. “to play with a national sporting team before I reach the age of thirty”. This is a useful and in fact essential strategy for goals, and we will talk about these later, but being so specific creates problems with a life quest or purpose statement. If people “achieve” their life quests too early in life, they sometimes lose their focus and direction, and start to think there is nothing left to achieve.

In other instances, people settle on life quests that are so abstract and remote that they find it difficult to relate what they do in everyday life to their quest. Their life quest becomes something “out there” and is easily forgotten in the rush and bustle of life. An example of such a purpose statement would be, “To live life to the full” or “To enjoy my life” etc.

Another trap is that we focus so much on achieving and doing things in life that we forget that much of life is about “being” as well as doing. People who are incapacitated in various ways can still make positive contributions to the world and to other people simply by “being” a certain kind of person and doing little more than relating with others.

A typical response from many is to focus the statement solely on personal growth and achievements, but as you will discover throughout this series, achieving personal goals rarely brings lasting satisfaction unless this achievement also benefits others in some way. Therefore, a life quest needs to involve both personal development and a positive contribution to the lives of others, and more generally to the wider world.

Along with something for the world, there also has to be “something in it for us”. If we are going to stick at this quest, the statement needs to acknowledge that we are trying to satisfy some of our basic desires, to express our unique identity and achieve a sense of satisfaction, fulfillment, enjoyment and contentment in what we do in our life.

Here are some guidelines for producing a “Purpose” statement that addresses these problems. These ideas have been adapted from a similar exercise in Tony Robbins’ “Get the Edge” programme.

Guidelines for a Purpose Statement

Your Purpose statement should ideally include four main elements or references:

-          The feelings you feel when you are absorbed by things you really love to do and live according to your “Passion(s)” (Desired Feelings)

-          A reference to your own growth and development towards fulfillment and wholeness (Personal Growth Phrase)

-          A reference to making the world a better place than when you entered it and improving the well-being of other people (Making the World a Better Place)

-          An expression of your unique identity - your passions, strengths, talents and best traits (A Package of Unique Passions, Strengths, Talents & Traits)

The statement should also satisfy three main qualities:

-          It should express something you can be, or become and something you can do throughout your life

-          It should be something that can be experienced, or is achievable within your lifetime

-          It should be as brief as possible without omitting any of these key elements or qualities.

Here is a model or template to help you create a purpose statement that “ticks all of these boxes”. The words in bold italics are instructions, and the underlined phrases are linking phrases:

Choose One: “The purpose of my life” Or “My life quest” Or “My purpose in life” is to

Choose One: “be”, “become”, “feel”, “experience”, “discover”, “find”

Insert Desired Feelings e.g. “happy”, “happiness”, “fulfilled”, “fulfillment”, “satisfaction”, “joy” etc.

Choose One: “by” Or “through”

Insert “Personal Growth” Phrase e.g. “growing to wholeness”, “becoming a better person”, “using my potential” etc. and

Insert “Making The World A Better Place” Phrase e.g. “helping others”, “making this world a better place”, “facilitating wholeness for others” etc. using

Insert “A Package Of Unique Passions, Strengths, Talents, & Traits” e.g. “my hard work, diligence and practical skills”, “my caring, nurturing personality”, “my musical and other creative talents” etc.

Here are some examples of purpose statements constructed from the template:

-          The purpose of my life is to become happy and fulfilled by growing to wholeness and facilitating wholeness for other people and the world using my passion for making things, my hard work, diligence and practical skills.

-          My purpose in life is to find joy and fulfillment by growing to wholeness and facilitating wholeness for others using my teaching and learning skills, my passion for how people learn and my caring, nurturing personality.

-          My life quest is to experience happiness and fulfillment by growing to wholeness and facilitating wholeness for others using my passion for teaching, my capacity to organize and categorize, my musical and other creative talents.

-          My life quest is to find lasting happiness and satisfaction through becoming a more whole person and helping to make this world a better place using, wherever possible, my passion for entertaining and by well-developed communication skills.

Here is an example that switches the elements around a little:

-          My life quest is to be fulfilled through becoming a caring, supportive and grateful person who makes this world a better place by using my passion for entertaining others and my communication skills and who thereby finds lasting happiness.