Oprah, I love you and appreciate all you’ve done for personal development, but I have to disagree with you on this point: the purpose of life is not to learn lessons.
Maybe that’s confusing, because we’re told from a young age that it’s important we learn as much as possible. We’re taught to look at every difficult situation and see what the lesson in it is. What are we supposed to learn?
So if the purpose of life isn’t to learn, what are we here for?
I was sitting in a deep open way, feeling communicative with the Universe when I asked this question: “What is the purpose of life?”
I expected a profound answer. I was asking the Universe, after all.
Instead, a voice in my head replied: To live. (There was even the hint of a “Duh!”)
Allowing Possibility
Isn’t it true that the most profound things in life are generally the most simple? When I received that answer, I thought, “Yes! That’s it!”
I’ve come to the understanding that my life is about experiencing myself and the world in a bigger and greater way.
That brings me to the question: What will I allow to be possible for myself?
The only limitations on this earth experience are the limitations I put on it. Knowing that, what can I accept, what can I stand in, what can I be strong enough to say “Yes!” to?
And of course, we will learn lessons along the way as we grow and expand, but that’s not the point. And focusing intently on the lesson can make us overlook the experience of living.
Release Your “Should”
When we know that the purpose of our life is to live fully, we release the feeling of “should” and the feeling that there’s something wrong.
When we experience life as something that we’re supposed to learn, we’re coming from the point of view that there are things we don’t know that we should know.
Remove a layer of ‘should’ and you’ll experience a new kind of freedom and empowerment. You’ll find yourself in a world where the only question is, “What do I want to experience for myself?”
Start Now
Today, I encourage you to sit with the possibility that there’s nothing you need to have or to learn in this situation. Whatever you’re dealing with in this very moment, whether it’s something small or a bigger challenge, consider that the most important thing is just that you have the experience.
Have the experience. That’s the whole point.
You can make a statement about what you want the experience to be like. Try saying something like, “Today, I choose to experience my courage and authenticity. I choose to be open to connection and I choose to be vulnerable with the people in my life.” Or it could be something like, “Today, I choose to see what it’s like to stick to a schedule and to be more disciplined. And I choose to be kind to myself as I practice this new skill.”
And see what happens. Notice how you feel and what the experience is like.
Now, I know it’s not always that easy. I know our fears and baggage from the past can make it harder to live in the present moment. That’s why I created the Power Shift Starter Kit – to help you start to move out of that into more freedom and joy. Want your free copy? Just click here.