Pain reveals purpose, and purpose leads to destiny

Sherre Webb

Some of the most successful people in the world often share stories of all the years of struggle and pain they had to endure before they finally made it. Most people stand in awe of these people upon hearing their stories and develop an admiration that only propels the successful even further in their careers. These same people never stop to think and consider that they too have the same capability to achieve massive success.

Often I wonder and ask myself why do people choose to sit back on the sidelines of life and cheer for and idolize successful people instead of putting more energy into creating a life for themselves that they, themselves can be proud of. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with cheering for and clapping for the ones who have achieved on a higher level because let’s face it, they have earned those cheers and claps; however, what is astonishing is the same people cheering, for some odd reason, aren’t also inspired into taking action in their own lives. They remain spectators. Whatever you do, don’t become a part of this group of people.

Whether you realize it or not, anyone you encounter on a personal level, or just in passing is actually dealing with some level of pain. There isn’t one person in the world who doesn’t have their own set of struggles, including you. Why not take that pain that you have been holding in and operating from and make use of it? Use it as fuel to change your life and the lives of other people. It is astounding the number of people that normalize the life they have been given when it encompasses so much pain. This is not a judgement call, but a wake up call coming from a place of compassion coupled with a desire to make an impact and change lives.

There is no better time than right now to make a decision that you will create a life that you love on such a level that there isn’t a soul on earth that could ever again attempt to tell you who are and what they think is best for you. There are a lot of people hurting right now and you may be one of them, but know that you can take that same pain, no matter where it stems from and repurpose it in order to change the trajectory of your life.

Since part of my purpose is to study human behavior in the area of purpose, confidence, and fear, it has been my observation that the majority of people have chosen to settle because they have pushed the pain of the past somewhere so deep down within and have instead chosen to create a false perception that the pain is now gone. Are you guilty of deceiving yourself into believing that whatever happened to you, or whatever experiences you have been through that has caused you a massive amount of pain on an emotional level has left because you ignore it?

It is important to understand that it is very possible to not be aware that pain from the past may still be affecting you daily on a subconscious level. If this is the case, it is certain that just beneath the surface, that same pain has never been dealt with and is still controlling the way you move through life. This is why someone can say something or behave in a certain way and you respond in a way that doesn’t fit that person’s intention. It’s not them, it’s you and your stuff.

Over time, it is easy to ignore pain because over time, indeed, the memory of the events and circumstances that caused a great deal of pain tend to fade. The pain seems to dull with each passing year, until something happens, usually around the actions of another human being. All of a sudden those actions or words spoken, trigger something within you that sets you off. The pain you thought was gone, now reemerges in the form of anger, agitation, impatience, judgement, or a feeling of contempt towards a person or certain group of people.

Why not decide to stop ignoring that which pains you and instead, use it to propel you into your purpose? It only makes sense to get something from the pain you have endured instead of allowing it to control you for the rest of your life.

On the surface, this sounds great, and if you were to ask the average person, they would tell you that they have suffered and overcome that which caused them pain. While this may be true for some because they have actually done the hard internal work required to heal, there are more people that have not done so.

Think about all the people you know and it’s a sure bet that you know of someone that has a nasty attitude or a negative outlook on life. No matter what good may come their way, these people always find a way to find something not so good about the blessing. This is the group of people who have not dealt with their pain, but instead go through life miserable and hating on people who are genuinely happy and making the most of life.

If you are among this group of people, it is time to stop sitting on the sidelines living vicariously through those who are more happy and successful than you. It is time to stop using what you have gone through in life as a crutch and a reason of why you can’t go any further, do better, and achieve a level of success that I know you have imagined. Indeed, it is time to turn your pain into purpose because there is someone out in the world that needs what you have to offer.

How do you do that? Find someone to help that is currently going through the same or similar life experiences that you have already gone through and overcome. Use your emotional scars as a reminder of why you never what to go back to that place or person again. Make your pain the reason to help someone escape from that same type of pain.

Humans are selfish and most of the time they only think about themselves without having a fundamental understanding of how shifting your focus on serving others also helps you heal from your own past hurts. This notion that somehow you are losing by giving is crazy, when in truth you will be rewarding on so many levels for helping someone else heal from and make it through their own struggles.

Stop operating from a place or time in your life that caused you so much pain. Stop allowing people’s actions, when done with good intentions, to trigger something within you (from your past) to the point that now you are looking at that person sideways. There is no better fuel than pain to finding your purpose and once you find your purpose, it will always push you into your destiny.

If you would like to share your thoughts, please leave a comment below. I would love to hear from you.

If you are dealing with past hurts and are ready to overcome them, please allow me to help you do just that. Click below to schedule a one on one coaching session.