Find Your Life Purpose in Five Questions
Summary of the video “How to know your life purpose in 5 minutes | Adam Leipzig | TEDxMalibu” by TEDx Talks.
Adam Leipzig noticed at his 25th Yale reunion that most classmates felt their lives were wasted, while the happier 20% could each state five things: who they are, what they do, who they do it for, what those people need, and how those people change. Combined into one sentence, these answers form a purpose statement and a simple elevator pitch that is outward-facing and starts conversations.
The Reunion Discovery
Most classmates felt their lives were off track
At a 25th college reunion, about 80% of Leipzig's friends said they were unhappy with their lives and felt they had wasted half of them. Their success on paper did not guarantee satisfaction.
The happier 20% knew five things about their purpose
Each of the happier classmates could state who they were, what they did, who they did it for, what those people wanted or needed, and how those people changed as a result. Together these five answers define a life purpose.
Learning for joy still produced a full life
The happier group had studied literature, rhetoric, and history for the love of learning, not for a specific job. They still found work and did not feel they had wasted a minute.
Learn It in Minutes, Not Years
Too much searching can replace living
Amazon lists 151,928 books about finding your life purpose, and some people spend their whole lives searching. Leipzig's point is that examining your life too much can keep you from actually living it.
Answer the five questions with one word each
Leipzig walks the audience through the five elements with a count of five for each. Short, one- or two-word answers keep the exercise quick, and the whole process takes minutes rather than years.
Why Outward Focus Works
Three of the five elements are about other people
Only who you are and what you do centre on yourself. The other three concern the people you serve, which forces you to look outward instead of inward.
Happier people focus on making others happy
The most successful people in any field focus more on the people they serve than on how they are served themselves. Leipzig's view is that making others happy is what leads to feeling taken care of and secure.
Turn It Into an Elevator Pitch
Answer "What do you do?" with the change you create
Instead of naming a job title, say what you do and how it changes the people you do it for. This gives a short, specific answer that replaces the awkward small-talk question.
A purpose-based pitch invites follow-up questions
A statement like "I give kids awesome dreams" makes people ask how you do it, which opens a real conversation. You can then share your purpose and help them find theirs.
Notable quotes
I feel as though I've wasted my life, and I'm half way through it — Adam Leipzig's classmates, as quoted by Leipzig
if all you're doing is examining, you're not living — Adam Leipzig
Happier people make it a point to make other people happy — Adam Leipzig
Action items
- Answer the five questions in one or two words each: who you are, what you do, who you do it for, what they want or need, and how they change as a result.
- Ask yourself which one thing you feel supremely qualified to teach other people, and use that to focus your answer on what you do.
- Write your purpose as one sentence: "I [what I do] for [who I serve], so they can [how they change]."
- Use that sentence as your answer to "What do you do?" and ask the other person about their own purpose.