Richard Leider: The Pope Of Purpose On How To Better Understand Your Callings and Gifts
Aug 2, 2024
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In this discussion, Richard Leider, an expert on purpose often called the 'pope of purpose,' shares his profound insights on defining one's calling and gifts. He emphasizes the difference between getting older and growing older, encouraging a life filled with intention. The conversation explores how younger generations can realign their career paths with their passions post-pandemic. Richard also delves into the importance of community and meaningful relationships, illustrating how purpose profoundly impacts well-being and fulfillment.
Understanding one's purpose is essential for mental health and combating feelings of depression, with purpose being a universal need beyond extraordinary moments.
Richard Leider presents a formula where Gifts, Passions, and Values collectively define one's Calling, a pivotal skill for aligning career with personal fulfillment.
Creating a supportive environment is crucial for expressing gifts and passions, as toxic workplaces can hinder individuals' potential and diminish their drive.
Deep dives
The Essence of Purpose
Purpose is inherently tied to fulfillment and mental health, with the notion that understanding one's purpose can combat feelings of depression and meaninglessness. Purpose is not merely a lofty goal restricted to life’s extraordinary moments; rather, it is essential for everyone, transcending age and socioeconomic status. The podcast highlights insight from Richard Leiter, a luminary in the purpose movement, who emphasizes that purpose allows individuals to assess their lives holistically, fostering not only happiness but also longevity. Engaging with purpose is crucial for everyone as it drives health, healing, and fulfillment at every stage of life.
Defining Gifts, Passions, and Values
To find one's calling, understanding the relationship between gifts, passions, and values is vital. Richard Leiter presents a formula where Gifts (G) plus Passions (P) plus Values (V) equals Calling (C), marking it as a crucial life skill for the modern individual. This formula emphasizes that discovering what one is naturally inclined to do, thoroughly enjoys, and values is essential for aligning one's career or profession with personal purpose. Strikingly, failure to recognize this alignment can lead many to pursue careers that do not bring fulfillment or a sense of purpose.
The Role of Environment in Fulfilling Purpose
The significance of a supportive environment in which to express one's gifts and passions cannot be overstated. Richard Leiter emphasizes that even with the best intentions, individuals can become disheartened if their workplace is toxic or misaligned with their values. The podcast stresses the importance of seeking out environments that affirm and encourage individual contributions, saying that without a conducive atmosphere, even the brightest talents may struggle to thrive. Ultimately, the environment should enhance one's drive, rather than diminish it, highlighting that job satisfaction is not solely about the role itself but the surrounding dynamics.
Loneliness and Its Impact on Purpose
The epidemic of loneliness presents a real danger to individuals' mental health and overall well-being. The podcast discusses how loneliness can rob people of the opportunity for intimate, purposeful relationships, which are essential for growth and fulfillment. Having a reliable support system or sounding board—which includes friends or even pets—is crucial for maintaining a sense of connection and direction. Richard Leiter underscores that isolation can be fatal, drawing attention to the need for people to engage with others as they navigate the challenges of aging and the pursuit of purpose.
Redefining Aging Through Purpose
Modern society must rethink age as merely a number, focusing instead on the qualities of growing versus just getting older. The discussion introduces the notion that many people find themselves in roles defined by age rather than capabilities or purpose, leading them to feel stagnant rather than vibrant. Richard Leiter advocates for engaging every age group—young and old alike—in conversations about purpose, emphasizing that every stage in life can be enriched by understanding and pursuing one's purpose, thereby shaping not just longevity, but the richness of life. Ultimately, the podcast conveys that purposeful aging is about making conscious choices to live fully, regardless of one's chronological age.
Nothing drives us like a purpose. We love stories of epic circumstances that led to heroic acts. Whether it’s Martin Luther King or your favorite fictional superhero who saves the world. Yet most of us lead lives that don’t feel so epic and the idea of having a purpose can sound far fetched and yes, even fictional. I feel the topic has gotten so diluted. But I feel it’s direly needed. Rabbi Daniel Lapin stated the opposite of depression is purpose. I again find it as the ultimate driver of all we do, or want to do. So here I bring you an expert. The OG. The GOAT if you will. Richard Leider is widely viewed as a pioneer of the global purpose movement and is actually referred to as “the pope of purpose”. PBS had him do a special called The Power of Purpose and he has eleven books and three best sellers. In this episode I dive in, getting to what I feel are the root issues on purpose that will help you grasp and embrace it further. We get into defining “calling” and “gifts” and I felt the conversation was more than profound. It’s pivotal. You can find Richard at richardleider.com and my muse for our talk is his book, Who Do You Want To Be When You Grow Old?: The Path of Purposeful Aging. But the testimonies on this book come from people of all ages. Though Richard also makes a profound distinction between getting older...and growing older, that we all need to hear.
Got a comment or question about an episode? Want to ask a question about your drive? Email me. I don’t want to just talk to you here, I want to talk with you. kmiller@kevinmiller.co.
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