Why Taking A Break Can Help You Find Your Purpose

We’ve all been there. We work several hours for at least 5 days a week (and sometimes more!) and then we find ourselves at crossroads on where exactly our direction of our lives are heading. We are stuck on understanding where we have to be because we are entirely dedicated to at least one huge area of focus and it’s mainly our careers (or going to school, depending on what you’re doing right now). We can be left worn out, exhausted, unmotivated, and unprepared for achieving our fullest potential towards success. Our minds can be cluttered with so much information and then with our responsibilities at home. But, did you know that when you have little time to think about yourself, you might take little action to steer yourself to finding your true purpose?

Now before you start thinking ahead, I don’t mean you have to quit your job to get going on finding purpose and I mostly do not recommend that (that’s why I’m not one of those travel bloggers who will travel for a long time after quitting their job). A break can mean doing a little getaway for yourself or learning to breathe better or you can widen your options meanwhile you’re pursuing something. What I mean by this is if you feel like you’re truly exhausted and not feeling fulfilled enough by your own job, you’d probably think about finding a new job that seems more fitting OR you might feel like you have to take up a new hobby to pursue outside of work. Either one works, either one is an action you can take.

You will find your purpose when you allow yourself time to actively pursue things. Your search for purpose begins with your desire to be a better person with more clarity towards a life that you can be comfortable and happy with. Your purpose will lead you to opportunities greater than where you feel incapable of your current status. Believe that you can do something that you’ll love and don’t waste time doing things that do not require you to put in something you’re not even happy or sure about.

Taking a break does not equal you are weak AT ALL. It means you are finally prioritizing your own needs and health to accomplish your goals, whether that’s towards self-development, self-care, or your true passion that adds meaning to your life. In fact, did you know that when you take a break, it boosts more of our productivity? We can solve problems better and we can actually THINK. I came across this post on Reddit and it got me thinking about finding our purpose.

This is what happened to me…

With my story, after a year, I’ve actually gone on to have clarity on what my purpose is. What I can tell you about knowing what your purpose is: it feels damn good. Flashback to 2018, I was a senior in college, I was depressed, burnt out from working all throughout attending college full-time and sometimes, taking up more than one job, and I was sedentary. When I got off work, if I wasn’t going to class, doing homework, or studying, all I wanted to do was sit, sleep, watch Netflix, binge watch on YouTube videos, and then occasionally, write on my blog, but so seldom. I was also crying often when I was alone because of being completely heartbroken after trying to accept that I had broken up with my ex of 3 years.

I would sometimes hit the gym if I felt like I’m up for it, but most of the time, I felt that I had no time… due to giving myself the excuse of where I actually just had no energy. Now, what did all of these things that I was doing outside of my responsibilities all have in common? These weren’t serving me towards a goal of happiness at all. It wasn’t anything I felt will even make a huge impact on my life. I was completely lost, confused, broken, and most of all: tired.

What happened with me was severely tearing me down: I had suffered so many panic attacks to the point it felt so hard to catch my breathing, my anxiety levels heightened and I was shaky, nervous, and felt paranoid that no one cared enough for me, and I was not living out to be the best version I can be. My life felt like it was in shambles.

Most people noticed and it affected relationships because, well, your attitude towards things can affect your wellbeing and people can read that off of others so well. Thereafter, I chose to move right after graduating from college to where my family moved to, Arizona. On a lot of my other blog posts, I talk about moving here so much. It was the best unplanned decision I ever made. It was unplanned because I had no job lined up for me over here, I just wanted to explore a fear of mine of what it’s like to move out of state and I was hoping, along the line, it would give me hope to finally start thinking about myself! I needed to get healthy!!!

So, I took that break and…

Since I moved over here, I had to quit my job as a marketing coordinator. I started pursuing freelance writing and that was also unplanned, I just knew content writing was something I was getting better at especially working on this blog site. I haven’t been working in a traditional 9-5 office job for this whole year yet because I was pursuing remote positions. I will, of course, would love to get back to the office job eventually, but I loved that during this time, I had more time to do different things. I had more time to actually start writing on my blog, which means, of course, as a creative outlet for me and a better way for me to practice more writing and marketing.

I also had more time to get out and pursue hobbies. With more time, you get more energy. I discovered hiking was becoming my favorite hobby while living here in Arizona. First off, this state has SO many hiking trails that I could not take advantage of. Second, I was too afraid to hike on my own before and only went hiking whenever my friends wanted to through traveling. Now, I am comfortable being this solo female hiker. I then discovered the #52HikeChallenge to motivate me more.

Hiking was the perfect hobby for me because I learned how to meditate better through it, which gave me more mental clarity = having clearer ideas. It also took me right off just living a sedentary life, it made me MORE fit and stronger. My physical health in combination with my mental health improved. On top of that, I had taken the supplement to go through therapy once a week for over 6 months. There’s a stigma attached to therapy, especially if you’re in the workplace, but trust me when I say this: if you decide to work on your mental and emotional wellbeing, it will help you become even more productive and raise that energy to achieve better results. I think it benefits ANYONE and that is not to be overlooked.

It did lead me to my purpose.

So, as I was saying about hiking, I was always in love with nature before making hiking a regular routine. I was just not able to see it as often when I felt held back from my own fears, lack of motivation, and feeling like I was not strong enough to get out of a rut.

I became more associated with the outdoors and it’s become such a huge part of my identity. I will always find a way to get outside. I’m not just there to learn for myself to educate people through my writing, I’m advocating for better wellness. My purpose is also to continue writing, to use my words to create power and allow others to find even more purpose in whatever that is, whether it’s helping a business get better ROI (return-on-investment) or just inspiring others to get out there too. To chase the fire that is burning through their hearts.

Would I have felt my purpose if I had no time? Absolutely not. I have been waiting for so long to find a reason for what I want to do more in my life: get healthy, love myself more, put myself first, and achieve more fulfilling accomplishments.

Your actions, and not just your thoughts, is the biggest push to finding your purpose. Passion and purpose are not the same things, but you can find purpose through your passion and your passion can be based on a purpose. Basically, you can influence behaviors and create different life decisions when you finally find your purpose. Find the time to.

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