Sometimes, we find purpose in what we do, and other times, purpose finds us.
The same is true for passion, insight, and commitment. Doing meaningful work that isn’t about us often teaches us lessons we can learn in no other way.
At times, meaning grabs us by the shoulders and shakes us when we least expect it. This happens most often when we work in the service of others.
In words often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”
Understanding who we are and what is truly important benefits from a catalyst. Of the many endeavors known to shake the tree of meaning and understanding, perhaps none has been more written about than serving others.
Through the work of serving others, we often redefine purpose and fulfillment.
This doesn’t mean we necessarily find that serving others is what matters most. Instead, we learn that working in the service of others clarifies things.
Through the work of community service, caregiving, mentoring, teaching, volunteering, or other forms of service, we confront the reality of who we are and what we truly believe.
By supporting and contributing to the well-being of others, we often discover the pathway to our own well-being. When we prioritize the needs and interests of others before our own, we learn about our own needs and interests.
In the service of others, we step outside of our own interests and operate in an entirely different dimension.
We learn how to see ourselves from a different point of view. Who we want to become, where we want to belong, and what community we want to be a part of suddenly become clearer.
Serving others allows us to see ourselves from the outside in.
On occasion, it is the service itself that shows us our passion and purpose. But more typically, navigating the challenges and dilemmas of helping others offers us a lens into what really matters most.
What starts out as a selfless act becomes a mutually beneficial exploration, enriching our understanding of who we are and what our purpose really is.
When was the last time you learned more about yourself through the service of others? ’Tis the season.
A Daily Dispatch from the Front Lines of Leadership.
