Duty & Purpose

I've been reflecting a lot lately on the word "purpose" and why it no longer resonates with me. It's a word that's become so diluted - everywhere you turn, someone's advising you to "find your purpose," as if it's something you can actively chase down. What they often fail to mention is that every detour, every seemingly non-purposeful path you take, eventually guides you closer to your true purpose. Ironically, the more obsessively you pursue it, the more elusive it becomes.

But beyond that realization, I believe many people have already uncovered their purpose and integrated it into the fabric of their daily lives. It's no longer an abstract concept or something they actively think about; it's simply part of who they are. And that's exactly where I find myself today. My purpose is clear: to enhance the lives of my friends, family, and myself. By elevating those closest to me, I naturally extend that positive impact outward, touching the lives of others.

Yet, despite this clarity, the word "purpose" lost its spark for me. As I dug deeper into why this happened, another word surfaced prominently: "duty." For reasons I couldn’t fully articulate at first, "duty" resonated profoundly. This shift started around July 2024, following a period of semi-retirement and an extended depressive funk. For those six months, I felt asleep at the wheel of my own life. I simply didn't care anymore about my purpose, especially after our unfortunate miscarriage. I was tired and lost. But after a transformative retreat in Portugal, it became abundantly clear to me - it was no longer just my choice to wake up; it was my duty.

At first, I struggled to define what "duty" truly meant to me. So, as I often do now when anxiety clouds my clarity, I turned to AI for guidance. Here's how it distinguished between duty and purpose:

Your purpose is internally driven—it's your personal reason for existing, shaped by your values, passions, and beliefs. It's about fulfillment, meaning, and aligning your actions with what deeply resonates within you. Your purpose energizes and motivates you from within.

Your duty is externally driven—it's the responsibility you carry because of your position, role, relationships, or the blessings you've received. Duty is about obligation and accountability to something or someone beyond yourself, be it family, community, society, or a higher power.

In my case:

• My purpose is to positively impact people's lives, grow personally, and find fulfillment in elevating others.
• My duty is to responsibly utilize my resources, talents, and blessings in a way that honors the abundance I've been granted. It's about ensuring these gifts aren't wasted but used effectively to fulfill my purpose.

The reason duty resonates so deeply now is that it has shifted from an internal motivation to an external accountability. Internally, I always held myself accountable. But now, externally, I'm held accountable by something greater - like a trusted board of directors that chose me specifically for this mission. It’s no longer just about personal choice. It’s about recognizing that I've been given extraordinary resources and opportunities; allowing them to go unused would not just be profoundly wasteful, it would be deeply... disappointing.

Ultimately, it's Emagineer's duty - to our customers, families & friends, communities, society, ourselves, and a higher power - to relentlessly pursue our mission and purpose: positively impacting lives, embracing growth, and finding deep fulfillment through elevating others.