The Power of Purpose

A daily meditation in empowerment from Robert Gass

January / February 2006

Robert Gass Utne magazine

Article Tools

E-mail

Comments

RSS

Write a simple statement that expresses your purpose, what you live for, your vision, and what matters.
- Keep the statement short.
- Make sure it's phrased in the positive: what you want, not what you don't want.
- Work with the words until they evoke a feeling of connection, of authentic power.
- The phrase can evolve. Just make sure it connects personally.
- For example: 'In everything I do, I am guided by love.' 'I am worthy to lead.' 'I am a sword of truth and justice.'
Every day, before each significant action that you take, pause and:
- Take several deep, relaxing breaths.
- Speak your phrase three times, silently or out loud.
- Use this pause in your busy day to actually connect.
- Remember what is most important to you, why you do what you do.
Make some real connection between this deeper purpose or vision, and specific action you are about to take. These activities might include:
- Any face-to-face meeting with an individual or group.
- Any significant telephone call.
- Any significant writing: important e-mails, memos, documents, etc.
- There are likely to be many such actions each day.
Journal daily about what you are experiencing and learning from doing this practice.
As in any meditative practice, if you find yourself forgetting or losing focus, simply begin again. Indulging in frustration, self-criticism, or analysis of why you didn't do it will only distract you from the practice. If you forget to do these spiritual exercises, even for days at a time, when you reconnect, simply start anew. Just make sure to pause for a moment of remembrance before you proceed.

Comments

Add Your Comment

You can use this comment form to enter your personal experiences or additional information and resources that you'd like to share with Utne Reader readers. Your helpful advice will be posted on this page. E-mail addresses are never displayed on comments, but they are required to confirm your comments. First time registrants: You will receive an email confirming your email address. Once you confirm, your comment will be posted. Questions about our comments policy? Click here.

Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br> tags.

New to Utne Reader?
Sign up to share comments.

Asterisks(*) indicate required fields.

Name*

Your name appears next to your comment.

E-mail Address*

This will be your login ID.

City	State	Zip Code

Password*

Confirm Password*

Have you signed up before?
Please log in before you enter your comment.

E-mail Address

Password

Forgot your password?

Comments

(Offensive materials and/or spam will be removed, no HTML allowed)

Please Note: Your sign-up must be verified via e-mail before your comment is published.

READ

E-MAILED

DISCUSSED

First Name: *	Last Name: *
Address: *	City: *
State/Province: *	Zip/Postal Code:*
Country:	Email:*
(* indicates a required item)
Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds. Canadian Subscribers - Click Here Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

The Power of Purpose

RELATED ARTICLES

Last Call

Jakob von Uexkull

Calm in the Chaos

Best Sex Ever

Comments

Asterisks(*) indicate required fields.

Your name appears next to your comment.

This will be your login ID.

Forgot your password?

(Offensive materials and/or spam will be removed, no HTML allowed)

Please Note: Your sign-up must be verified via e-mail before your comment is published.

Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds. Canadian Subscribers - Click Here Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds.
Canadian Subscribers - Click Here
Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here