Our ultimate quest is to fulfill the potential we contain within. Like seeds, we are born with the knowledge embedded within us that we need to fulfill that potential. We arrive on this earth with purpose, and it's our duty to create a supportive internal and external environment for ourselves so that we can live it out.
Sometimes the search for our purpose can feel like an outward journey of hide-and-seek: our calling is hiding somewhere in the world for us, and we are the seekers of it. The belief is that we must embark on great adventures to discover a message, tucked far away somewhere, full of insight and instruction on why we’re here and what we’re meant to do.
Instead, consider this: we come to this earth with a personality and all its strengths, skills, and interests that are waiting to encounter experiences and learning opportunities that act as water and sunlight for the seeds within to grow.
In this way, there’s an outward element to fulfilling our purpose–we need other people and life encounters to help us discover and nurture it. But ultimately, our potential–our capacity to become someone particular in the future–already lies within.
Who we are and what we are able to contribute unfolds in a constantly evolving process, like a seed maturing through various stages of growth. This development happens in an almost effortless way, but we also have an active role to play in it.
First, we must seek the things that foster the development of our potential, for example: mentors, educational opportunities, and healthy habits. Second, we must pay attention to the things we encounter that stir something inside of us. Whatever those things are, they can offer insight around what gifts we have to offer the world. More than anything, we must have faith in the potential that lies within. We must believe in and be willing to envision what we’re capable of before we ever carry it out.
