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Many of the world’s wisdom traditions teach that we humans all have a core purpose – a gift uniquely assigned to us by the universe. Eastern religions call this “dharma,” and we also know it as “an inner calling.”
What’s intriguing about this idea is that we know so many people are unhappy in their jobs. And, even after many of us have achieved some sense of career success, wealth and status in our lives, we find they’re not accompanied by “inner” feelings of success – i.e. joy, fulfillment and well-being.
According to Harvard Medical School visiting scholar, Suneel Gupta, “people are achieving more than ever before, and getting no greater sense of fulfillment in their every-day lives. We’ve compartmentalized work and well-being and ignored the fact that both are essential for sustained success. We’ve assumed that outer success leads to inner well-being–despite history showing us that this has never been the case.”
In his new bestseller, “Every Day Dharma: 8 Essential Practices For Finding Success & Joy In What You Do” Gupta says that each of us has a personal essence – unique talents and activities that make us feel passionate, energetic and fully aligned to the what we were put here to do. And it’s not only incumbent upon each of us to clarify what experiences in life make our own hearts sing, helping others discover theirs has become an essential leadership practice.
In the Gospel of Thomas, it’s written that “if we bring forth what is within us, that thing will save us. If we don’t, it will destroy us.” This means, of course, that living a fully fulfilled and meaningful life demands that we first discover who we truly are at our core – and then go and put our true selves out in the world.
Suneel Gupta joins us to discuss what our lives could be like if we found ways for everyone to live a more purposeful life. It’s a discussion too often overlooked in our workplaces — and it’s especially timely and enlightening.
