Purpose

How many of us are living the life that we imagined as kids.  I am a bit of a daydreamer.  When I was young I would imagine myself a baseball or basketball star. Perhaps a professional golfer, or president of a very prestigious business.  Kids imagine themselves doctors, fireman, teachers, police officers.  They could be veterinarians, astronauts or a movie actor.  But who envisioned themselves as an accountant, a sales clerk or the client services manager for a signs and graphics company?

My goal, my dream, professionally, was to own my own business.  This dominated my thinking starting in high school and on through college.  I had the opportunity to achieve that dream, but sadly it did not work out.  I still have thoughts or inklings to try again, but to tell you the truth, I don't think that I was very good at it.  Plus, the thought of someone else paying the bills and dealing with the headaches and me receiving a consistent paycheck sounds pretty good at this point.

Ever since I realized that my dream was a fading reality, I have tried to grab on to a new sense of purpose.  A new idea to chart my next course by.  I want to matter, and I want to do something that has purpose and will impact the masses.  I search my fading memories as to how I decided it was my purpose to become a business owner.  I find my vision clouded.  But I think it is easier to see when you are younger.  Four kids, a wife, and a mortgage tends to cloud the crystal ball.

I had an interesting conversation with my brother on this topic.  He has dreams to be a full-time, professional photographer.  Whatever job he may be doing at the time, he has that dream in the back, front or middle of his mind (depending on the day, I am sure).  He lives in the San Francisco area and has found that he can make a pretty decent living as a bartender at an upscale hotel.  While he strives to pursue his photography, he had such an interesting take on his current station in life.  I made a comment about doing something in life that matters and has real purpose and he said that he looks at it like this.  "I see, typically weary, business travelers and people coming off a long day at work, come in, sit down to relax.  I offer them a drink, a smile and help them to relax and wind down after a long day.  Right now, that is my purpose, to help them relax."

Maybe it is not about saving the world or impacting the masses.  Maybe it is finding a way to be purposeful where you are.  We have dozens of interactions everyday with some people that we know well and others that we do not know at all.  We have the opportunity to impact the masses every day.  We can be the most sincere accountant, the friendliest sales clerk and the most helpful and contientious client service manager we can be.  And maybe, just maybe, while in the thick of the daily grind and daily minutia, we can find our purpose and acheive our dreams.