There’s a big difference between authentic vs ego-driven purpose. One is about creating from the “you” that’s already 100% whole and complete. The other is about fabricating a “self.”
[Full Transcript]
There’s a big difference between authentic vs ego-driven purpose. One is about creating from the “you” that’s already 100% whole and complete. The other is about fabricating a “self.”
Is your sense of purpose coming from an authentic place—from the truth of who and what you really are? From a place of inspiration, of creative expression, of ideas and solutions that you feel a deep need to put out into the world?
Or is it coming from a place of who you think you should be? A place of fixing what’s broken inside by reinventing your self-concept into “successful entrepreneur”?
The intention behind your purpose will determine whether you experience deep fulfillment or a lifetime of frustration.
What if Your Purpose Wasn’t About Fixing What’s Wrong With You?
What if instead of being driven by the need to invent an idealized persona, your true purpose was about expressing what’s already perfect about you? Focusing on things like:
- Creating your unique offering based on your true strengths, interests, skills, and talents.
- Designing your business’s competitive advantage (positioning) and strategic narrative (messaging) around those authentic strengths.
- Being a conduit for a deeper and richer level of creative intelligence and inspiration.
- Changing your perspective from “what’s in it for me” to “I’m already enough.”
- Trusting that true abundance comes naturally when you focus on giving, not just getting.
Dharma vs Ego
In the Bhagavad Gita, the term “Dharma” refers to your inner truth—a duty to live in alignment with your true self.
This “Self” (capital S) is much more than what you do for a living or a traditional sense of identity. It’s your deepest nature. The awareness that’s already complete and fulfilled.
Think of Dharma as being true to your conscience, that little voice that nudges you toward authenticity and growth. When you create from that awareness, you’re creating from a place that doesn’t need to get anything from what you’re doing. You don’t build your business to be happy, but as an expression of your inherent happiness.
The part of you that’s the false, made-up persona is just a self-concept invented in your mind. It’s the story of who you think you are. That story can sound something like “I’m a loser” or “I’m successful” and everything in between.
And that story can change moment by moment. You land a huge client, and your story becomes “I’m successful.” Then that same client dumps you for whatever reason, and your story shifts to “I suck.”
When you create from that constantly changing ego-driven story, you’re creating from a place of neediness, lack, and fear. When your sense of self is based on external circumstances, you can end up spending a good chunk of your life feeling like you’re somehow broken when things don’t go according to plan. You end up using entrepreneurship, money, and success as a way to fix that broken part of yourself.
How to Discover Your Authentic Purpose
The tricky part of identifying your authentic purpose is that it can feel like it’s always shifting. The specific words you use to express your purpose can change on a daily basis. One day you might express your purpose as “to reinvent the art of logo design.” Then a week later, it could sound like “to make stunning visual branding for SaaS companies.”
Compared to an ego-driven purpose like “to become a tech billionaire,” the deeper part of our nature is a lot harder to pin down into words. It’s more of a theme than a statement—a composite of words and images and feelings.
To get a clearer sense of that theme, it helps to stop, create some space, and just get really quiet inside. If you meditate, you probably already know how to do this. If not, then think of something that brings you a bit of peace—walking on the beach or in the woods, going swimming or for a run, or sitting down with a blank sheet of paper and doodling. Whatever works best for you.
Once you’re in a more quiet mental state, ask yourself “What do I really want to create right now?” Then just listen. Don’t try to force a response or jump to the right answer. That’s the impatient ego at work. Just let the answers come naturally in their own time.
When the answers do start to come, you may be surprised at how familiar they feel. They might be ideas and insights that you’ve been aware of for a long time, but had difficulty putting into exact words because they kept getting drowned out by all the internal chatter. Just keep giving yourself the time and space you need to explore them more deeply.
This process could take days, weeks, or even months. You may find yourself thinking you found the answer, only to do a complete 180 later when looking at it with fresh eyes.
At some point though, you’ll start to recognize common themes and consistent threads between these insights, almost like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Then one day, when you least expect it, that puzzle will come together into a completed picture that feels more real and energizing than any ego-driven purpose ever could.
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