Figure Out What

You Want & Need

Theories:

Do what you want to do. AND do what you need to do (so you can keep doing what you want to do). If you don’t know what you want to do, I recommend that you start by engaging with the following articles/videos by Mark Manson:

It’s easy to lose yourself in the blur of all the possibilities and people telling you what you should do with your life and what you’re supposed to want. But you should not feel pressure to conform to societal expectations.

As you get older you realize that no one really knows what they’re doing. All humans are inherently flawed and limited in their perception of the world. No one has universal knowledge. No one knows the answers to all questions. No one knows anything, except what they’ve learned and experienced. We are all just making decisions by applying prior knowledge to the current situation.

Once you have that mindset, you realize that there is no path to follow. You become your “ideal self” by cultivating a unique combination of life experiences that align with your individual wants and needs.

To live an authentic, meaningful, and prosperous life, you must separate what you think you want from what you actually want. In other words, separating your authentic interests from those that result from socialization. To do this, you must become self-aware. Here are a few articles that can help deepen your understanding of self-awareness:

Life is not about doing the “right” things. It’s about finding what’s right for you.

If you don’t know what you want to do, well, figure it out. Inspiration won’t strike if you’re just sitting around waiting for it. Do something. Spend time thinking, reflecting, wandering, exploring, and meeting people who inspire you. Express your creativity.  Discover your strengths and interests. Find the themes and patterns in your life. Find the answers to your questions. Create the solutions to your problems. Know that you are interested in the things you want to understand. Know that you work harder on the things that you are passionate about. And know that your passion, answers, and solutions can inspire someone else, as we continuously build upon each other’s ideas.

Ensure that you are physically, mentally, and emotionally capable of self-actualization. Identify practices and treatments that promote longevity, increase vitality, and relieve pain. Here are some additional articles that can help you figure out what you want and need:

Commit to being yourself. Commit to loving yourself.

Reflection:

  • Take the Meyers-Briggs Personality Assessment. Do the results resonate with you?

  • Download Co-Star and create an account. Do the results resonate with you?

  • Engage with 7 Steps to Discover Your Personal Core Values by Scott Jeffery. Respond to the prompts and engage in the activities outlined in the article.

  • Engage with 7 Strange Questions That Help You Find Your Life Purpose by Mark Manson.  Respond to the prompts outlined in the article. (side note - I read this article for the first time in college. He writes “organizing things efficiently” in a list of examples of “things” people might obsess over, and I didn’t notice or realize it was “my thing” the first few times I read the article. I figured it out on my own (see about me) and now seeing it written in the article, I think it’s funny that the answer, for me, was there the whole time and I didn’t even notice.)

  • Engage with 10 Questions for Better Self-Awareness by Nick Wignall.  Respond to the prompts outlined in the article.

  • Engage with How to Craft Your Personal Vision by Scott Jeffery. Respond to the prompts and engage with the activities outlined in the article.    

  • Engage with How to Learn About Yourself by Stephen Warley. Respond to the prompts and engage with the activities outlined in the article.

  • Additional guiding questions:

    • What is your style?

    • What is your approach to life?

    • What questions do you want to answer?

    • What skills do you want to learn?

    • What do you find interesting?

    • How do you feel about your health overall?

    • What are you doing that makes you feel healthy?

    • What are you doing that makes you feel unhealthy?

    • What is preventing you from engaging in healthy behaviors?

    • What is supporting you in engaging in healthy behaviors?

    • Do you have any mental or physical conditions (diagnosed or undiagnosed)?

    • What professionals do you need or want to schedule appointments with?