What do we mean by “Purpose”?

Questions relating to purpose are among the deepest and most profound we can ask. Answers to such questions are often elusive, but are easier to find when we ask the question in the most helpful way. Take a moment to consider this question: “What is the meaning of life?” You might be thinking, “What do you mean by that?” It’s a fairly nebulous question, and one that could yield all kinds of answers, or maybe none at all. Here’s one humorous take on this question from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:

So, there you go; the answer is, of course, 42. Jesting aside, contrast the question “What is the meaning of life?” with this one: “What should I do to live a fulfilling and meaningful life?” Both questions relate to purpose, though as explained by psychologist Jonathan Haidt, the first is asking about the purpose of life (“Why are we here?”) while the second deals with purpose within life (“How ought I to live?”). Global questions about the purpose of life are concerned with the meaning of life itself; pursuing answers to these questions is typically the work of philosophy and theology. Questions about purpose within life are much more personal and individualistic, and are concerned with the idea of a life well-lived. Although philosophy and theology also have much to say about purpose within life (how one ought to live), this second form of the question lends itself very well to empirical research. Researchers in the area of positive psychology, for example, have begun to elucidate the key components of human flourishing, including how a stronger sense of life purpose contributes to well-being. For these reasons, our focus will be on purpose within life: an individual’s personal aspirations for how to live so as to experience joy and fulfillment. 

A more elaborate definition of purpose emerges from the work of the many theorists and researchers that have explored this construct. As one would expect, definitions vary somewhat across authors, but several common components repeatedly emerge that have a bearing on how one might articulate a useful life purpose. Essentially, purpose can be defined as one or more consistent and central life aims that: 1) emerge from one’s unique strengths and interests, 2) generate goals for the future that guide current actions, 3) are personally meaningful while facilitating one’s connection to someone or something outside the self, and 4) are deliberately chosen and pursued (Rainey, 2014). In other words, purpose is your personally-derived, authentic set of life aims that guides your behavior, pulls you into the future, and gives meaning to life.             

Before reviewing the benefits of purpose and the process of articulating your own purpose, it’s helpful to note how this term relates to two similar constructs: meaning and values. Purpose is often used synonymously with meaning, or is considered a contributor to meaning (e.g., Frankl, 1963;  Seligman, 2011). When a distinction is made between these two terms, purpose is more often used to describe how an individual connects the present to the future; that is, purpose tends to be motivational and action-oriented (Rockind, 2011). Meaning, on the other hand, is more about cognitive connections and a sense of coherence, particularly connecting the present with the past. It provides one with the feeling that life “makes sense” (Heintzelman & King, 2014; Hicks et al., 2010). Even in making these distinctions, it is likely that there is a close bi-directional relationship between these two constructs; one can find meaning through pursuing purpose, and purpose can be informed by experiencing meaning.

Purpose is also closely related to an individual’s life values. As described in another module, values refer to our desires to interact with the world, other people, and ourselves in certain ways. Russ Harris (2009) describes values as “what we want to stand for in life, how we want to behave, what sort of person we want to be, what sort of strengths and qualities we want to develop” (p. 191). Consequently, both purpose and values are characterized as being guides for living that are personalized, aspirational, and action-oriented. In my own readings and experience, I’ve observed that one’s purpose tends to revolve around a single theme or closely related set of themes, and addresses more the what and why questions in our lives. The process of articulating values tends to allow more detailed descriptions of the qualities we’d like to cultivate, and fleshes out more of how we’d like to live. In my mind, purpose and values are simply two complementary facets of our efforts to live intentionally; to live a life illuminated by the “big picture” of what we want most out of life. I’ve found it very rewarding to spend time exploring both purpose and values, and encourage you to do the same. To learn more about values, check out the values module.