Purpose VS Goals

All goals need a destination. This is why I can't say enough about the importance of our vision statements . Taking the time to write a vision statement forces us to have a purpose. Without a purpose we are just wandering aimlessly through life hoping something good will happen.What would happen if we went to the bus station or airport and asked for "a ticket" and that was all the information we could give? Chances are we wouldn't end up where we wanted to go. And if we ever did end up where we wanted to go, it would take a lot longer to get there than if we would have just been specific in the first place.

Lets expand on the "trip" metaphor for a moment.
Goals = the preparation for our trip; buying our tickets, booking a motel, packing our suitcase, etc...
Purpose= where we are going, our destination

Our goals may be the set of our sail, but at some point in time we need to decide where we are sailing to.
To be truly fulfilled we need to have a purpose in at least 3 areas of our lives (home, social, and work). Home, of course, being the most important. What type of parent do I want to be? What type of relationship do I want to have with my spouse? What type of house do I want to live in? What State or Country do I want to live in? What will be the important life lessons that I pass on to my children? These are all important questions to ask when trying to give ourselves a purpose.

Socially we need to ask ourselves questions like; What do I want to do for fun? What type of friends do I want to have? What will I do in my free time? What charities will I support?

The third component is "work". What type of job do I want? How much money do I want to make? How will I contribute to society? What investments will I make? What risks will I take?

Once we decide on our destination/purpose it will be easier to figure out what goals we will need to get there. It is a step by step process, one goal at a time. And remember, once we have that burning desire and throw some emotion into the mix our subconscious mind can take over. When our consuming thoughts are positive and focused on our purpose the creative ideas will come to us more readily. Our subconscious mind is continually working on something, why not let it work on "our purpose".