I kept asking myself one question: what is my purpose? It sounds simple, but it’s one of those questions that keeps changing the more you live. I used to think purpose was something you discovered once, a single answer that stayed with you forever. It turns out it’s not that static. It evolves, just like we do.
When I was at university, I thought my purpose was to design sustainable buildings. When I first picked up a camera, I thought it was to inspire people to travel (and in many ways, that’s still true).
But now, my purpose feels more aligned with something deeper: helping people grow into their highest potential and find more freedom in life.
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I’ve learned that purpose becomes clear only when you look inward
One thing I’ve learned is that purpose rarely comes from external validation — not from success, money, or praise. It reveals itself most clearly when you consciously look inward. It’s rooted in your own experiences, emotions, and patterns.
If you’re walking a path that doesn’t feel right, that might be your intuition whispering that something’s off. Sometimes it takes slowing down and getting quiet enough to hear what your heart has been trying to say all along.
Understanding what drives you — fear or desire — changes everything
When I look back on my choices, I realize that everything I’ve done has been driven by either fear or desire. Depending on where I was in life, one usually spoke louder than the other.
Fear-driven purpose is about protection. It’s born from something painful you’ve felt, something you want to prevent others from experiencing. Think of David Attenborough: his life’s work is rooted in the fear that humanity might destroy the natural world.
I recognize that same current in myself. I fear a world where technology isolates us, where people trade well-being for productivity, and where connection feels artificial. Those fears fuel my desire to help others reconnect — with themselves and with each other.
Desire-driven purpose is about creation, not prevention
While fear pushes us to protect, desire pulls us to create. It’s the vision of a world that could be, and the joy of building it.
Walt Disney is the perfect example. His purpose wasn’t to fix what was broken; it was to imagine something magical and make it real. His life was guided by desire — the desire to inspire joy, wonder, and togetherness.
Neither fear nor desire is better than the other, but understanding which one drives you more can guide the art you create, the career you pursue, and the life you build.
My purpose now is to help others grow without losing themselves
I want to create spaces, online and in real life, where people can connect deeply, grow freely, and prove that success doesn’t have to come at the cost of authenticity. That’s why I do what I do.
Purpose becomes real when you put it into practice
Earlier this year, my girlfriend Colleen and I co-hosted a personal development retreat in Norway. One of our workshops focused on exactly this: helping people uncover their purpose. Watching people have breakthroughs in real time was unforgettable.
If you’d like to try this process yourself, here are the three steps we used at the retreat:
Step 1: Discover your drivers.
Write down your fears and desires.
Ask yourself:
Be specific. Saying “I want to help people” is fine, but “I want to help people feel safe enough to be themselves” carries real power.
Step 2: Connect the dots.
Now ask why these fears and desires exist.
Which life moments shaped them? Who was there? What changed in you because of them?
At our retreat, people paired up and shared their stories, and it was beautiful. Strangers bonded over shared experiences, realizing they weren’t alone.
Here’s the purpose statement I wrote for myself during that exercise:
“Because of my own struggles with mental health, I feel called to help others overcome self-limiting beliefs and live more authentic, fulfilling lives. I need to embrace what makes me ‘me,’ share my story openly, and prioritize freedom and genuine connection.”
Step 3: Align your actions with your purpose.
Once you understand your purpose, the real work begins: aligning your life with it. That means being honest about what fits and what doesn’t.
Maybe your job no longer feels right. Maybe a relationship no longer supports who you’re becoming. That’s not failure — that’s growth.
Your purpose doesn’t need to change the world — just your world
Purpose doesn’t have to be grand or world-shaking. It just has to matter deeply to you. Because when something truly matters, you’ll give it your full energy and heart.
And that’s what makes life meaningful.
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