How to Find a Fulfilling Life Path Beyond Occasional Happiness

Happiness is the fleeting joy I experience when the unpredictable or unplanned goes my way. Then, it is gone. I’ve spent most of my life pursuing happiness, because it conveniently relieves me of the monotony of living the cold, numb reality paying bills, working on a job I hate, and not seeing a light at the end of this 30 – 40 year tunnel of doom. Yeah, happiness looks pretty good, but it is only a vacation from my real life – can’t seem to take enough of them or stop thinking about them, right?  Happiness is nothing more than a legal addiction that robs me of a consciously and continuously filling existence and gives me the painful, destructive alternative happiness hands us, when it’s not happening often enough – like too much food, drugs, alcohol, sex, thrill seeking…none of it lasts for long. So, I’ve taken a step back from the bright spark of happiness’ temporary warmth and started seeking fulfillment’s soul warming glow that is changing my tunnel of doom into a tunnel of dreams for the next 30 – 40 years.

I have begun asking myself these questions and began looking for answers at a place called The Gift Table, where fulfillment brings about sustained happiness without the drama of addiction and gives twice the high:

• .       Do you look forward to living your life, as is, everyday or do you dream of a different life?
•        Do you spend your days wondering or feeling like you want or should be somewhere else doing something more lucrative with a higher purpose?
•        Do you feel like a “Calling” or “Truth” has gone unrealized or recognized in your daily life?
•        Are these feelings creating stress in your daily life or has this new curiousness begun settling in with a sudden urge to consider a more fulfilling life path?
•         With visceral feeling to full knowledge of a new path, does the thought of pursing this path feel like flipping over your Hallmark holiday table with your grandmother’s fine china on it?
•        How can I change my path, meaningfully, while honoring the life I’ve built and the people I love?
•        How can I see clearly my compelling path toward the soul warming vision of a life fulfilled for the years to come?

Think carefully about these questions. Share your thoughts with 1 or 2 confidants who truly and fully loves, supports, and stands with you in tough times – not just anyone. And, know the following about you is true:

1.         You are special, rare, and unique in the Cosmos – so is your unique gifting
2.         You matter and deserve a fulfilling life
3.         You and your unique talent are expected – you can feel it, right?
4.         You are destined to fill others up, before being filled up – guaranteed
5.         You determine your gift’s changing path and its direction
6.         Your greatest success, in life, will happen through your gifting
7.         You must be prepared for adversity along the way to living along your chosen path to a more fulfilling life
8.        You must be quiet and reflect often on your gift and its use
9.        You must not confuse your gifts with your competencies
10. .     You must give it away or it robs you complete fulfillment beyond financial means

We’ll talk more next time,when we continue unraveling this beautiful mystery called the Gift Table and our personal journey toward more fulfilling lives.