What's your why? (5 real examples to help you find yours) (2023)

My personal statement of "why" in life is to be worthy of all that I have been given and to have as positive an impact on the world as possible. But what is a "why" statement? How can you find your own "why" in life?

You need to find and define your personal "why" in life. Every person has a deep motivation that drives their life in general. If you keep asking yourself why you do the things you do, you will eventually find your own personal "why" in life.

This article will show you how to find your personal "why." I have included practical tips and several examples from others. After completing this article, you'll know exactly how to find your "why."

What is a "why" in life?

What is your "why" in life?

This question is very common but it makes you think about what you really want out of life. How do you find out what your "why" in life is? Asking as many questions as possible:

• Why am I doing this?
• Why do I value this over this?
• Why am I not happy when X happens?
• Why am I stressed now?

If you keep asking yourself these questions, chances are you'll end up with the same answer. That answer is almost always your "why" in life. This is the reason that makes you move forward in life.

The reason you are not happy now is because your situation does not match your "why".

Common answers to these "why" questions are often a variation or combination of the following:

• take care of my family
• Success.
• Leave a legacy.
• feel loved.
• Have a positive impact on the lives of others.
• Can.

As you read this, you're probably thinking, "I want everything you just said!" And without even thinking about that question, he could plan her life to be a successful and wealthy person with a tremendous positive impact on the world.

Because that sounds like a good reason to be alive, right?

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Find your "why" in life

So how do you find your “why” in life? How not to find it:

• Sitting in a chair by the window and waiting for someone to tell you what your "why" should be.
• With a "¡Eureka!" Moment.
• Copying someone else's "why" in life.

no To find your personal "why" in life, you really need to pick up the shovel and dig deeper into your awareness. as you begin to dig by asking yourself the questions that I have listed above.

Here's an example:

A: Why am I so stressed all the time?

Q: Because my job stresses me out.

Q: Why do I work every day from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm?

A: Because I need money to do the things I value the most.

What do these answers show me? That my "career" has absolutely nothing to do with my "why" in life. I only work because the money allows me to do the things I value most. Let's continue.

Q: What do I value the most?

A:To live a happy lifeand being around people with whom I can have positive interactions.

Okay, so this is getting more existential, isn't it? Your "why" in life is usually not tied to a single factor in your life (such as a career, a hobby, or a single good cause). It is usually bigger than that.

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Let's continue.

Q: Why do I want one?positive impact on the world?

A: Because I had an opportunity in life that not many other people had (good upbringing, basic needs, family, health, education). I don't just wanttake it for sure. I want to take this opportunity to give something back to the world.

AHA. Here we are. That's a "why" statement that I personally can feel comfortable with. With just 3 questions I got to the bottom of my "why" which shows me what drives me to do the things I do in life.

Examples of company "why" statements

The "why" statement has become very popular since the bookStart with the why by Simon Sinekbecame a worldwide bestseller.

This book explores the importance of "why" statements in the corporate world and how leaders can inspire more people to do the same by starting with the question "why?"

The bottom line is that everything you do, whether you are a company or an individual, must have the same rationale. So if someone were to start questioning his actions (why is he doing this? why this? why that?), they would ideally end up going back to his main "why" statement.

Since "why" statements are already very common in companies, I decided to include some familiar examples here. Personal "why" statements are even rarer, but reading these examples might inspire you to reconsider your own versions!

• Our goal is to challenge the status quo. We want to think differently. -Apple
• Connecting millions of people in real life around the world through a community marketplace, so you can belong everywhere. -airbnb
• Empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more. -microsoft
• Organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. -Google

Finding your personal “why” is important

A "why" statement is often used in the corporate world, but why is it important to determine your own "why" statement as well?

Because you are more likely to be happier when you live a life aligned with your life purpose. We wrote a whole article.about this topic here.

We have examined this issue ina great surveyrecently and found that 34% of people associate their purpose in life with their happiness.

Othersinteresting studyfollowed 136,000 people for about 7 years and came to the eye-opening conclusion:

The analysis showed a lower risk of death for participants with a high life purpose. After adjusting for other factors, mortality was about a fifth lower in participants who reported having a strong sense of purpose.

Purpose in life and its relationship to all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events: a meta-analysis

So it's clear that finding your "why" in life is important and conducive to your happiness. But how do you like yours?

Define your own personal “why” in life

You can't go around copying and pasting someone else's "why" and expecting to be happy doing the same things.

No, you have to define your own personal "why" in life.

As much asHappiness is something that is unique to each and every human being., the "why" differs from person to person.

Richard Branson's "why" in life could be"Having fun on my journey through life and learning from my mistakes."while your personal “why” may be to provide the best life for your family and children.

Copying and pasting the "why" of someone you respect and admire is likely to leave you unhappy and dissatisfied. For example, I think Richard Branson does amazing things, but he wouldn't be happy if he were in his place. My own "why" is very different from yours!

I have defined my own purpose in life and I encourage you to do the same!

Examples of personal "why" statements in life

Although you have to define your own "why" in life, it is still interesting to read about what other people say. So I've asked that sample personal "why" statements be included in this article.

I don't want you to copy and paste these "whys" and make them your own. I just want to show you how diverse these statements can be!

Here are real examples of personal "why" statements from the people I asked!

This personal "why" statement comes from David Jacobson, president ofhorizon mood. I think this is a great example of how easy it can be to make a personal "why" statement in life.

My why is to share the power of therapeutic humor with others. Humor changed my life. It has allowed me to cope with chronic pain and severe arthritis. I was able to complete a 50-mile unicycle ride for a fundraiser, which I attribute in part to my sense of humor helping me with it. I've written a book on mood habits that help me manage them, and now I'm starting a research project to use positive rather than negative depression tests (how happy are you versus how sad are you, etc.). My sense of humor is my source of happiness!

"My why is to help people be more connected in their lives, careers and businesses."

This "why" statement is from Beth Bridges and shows how one life event can solidify your life purpose. Beth is a writer specializing in the power of networks. She also runs The Networking Motivator, a website aboutShare network strategies with others.

This is how she defines her “why” in life.

My why is to help people be more connected in their life, career and business. A year and a half ago my husband of 17 years had a massive heart attack and was gone within minutes. What saved my sanity? The friends and business associates who were happy to help me with things big and small. Without this scholarship I would have been lost in despair and sadness. Now I want to make sure that everyone has the tools and knowledge to build their own community so that they can survive whatever life throws at them.

"Strive to be the best version of myself to know that my mom smiles at me."

This personal "why" statement comes fromcolby oeste, which tells a very moving story about how a life event can affect your "why." I think this is a great example of how you can be driven to be your best by defining a rationale, also known as your "why."

I lost my mother on March 14, 2017 to alcohol abuse, the extent of which I did not find out until it was too late. It took me about 2 years to realize that I needed to make a change in my life to become the person I know I wanted to be. Almost 4 months ago, I decided to work smarter AND harder and "spread my wings" a little. I quit drinking, became so committed to health and wellness that I reduced my body fat percentage to around 5% while simultaneously adding 3 (soon to be 4) streams of income to my life. While I am far from done and will likely never be satisfied, I will continue to strive to be the best version of myself to know that my mom is 100% smiling at me.

"Leave the world better than I found it and be remembered by the people whose lives I touched as a force for good in their lives."

This one comes from Paige, which I find to be a really inspiring example. "Leave the world better than I found it" is a goal as simple as it is powerful. Paige founded a global marketing and branding company calledExperts and tycoons- 18 years ago. She has been happily married for 27 years, she has a close circle of friends, nieces, nephews and godchildren.

She says:

Quite simply, I want to leave the world better than I found it and be remembered by the people whose lives I have touched as a force for good in their lives.

I have lost 7 people very close to me in 6 years and I don't know first hand anyone on their deathbed who wishes they had worked harder, made more money or won more awards. They just want to be with the ones they love the most and tell them that they matter. I often think about these people and the role they played in my life. I want to be remembered because I gave my best to others so that somehow their lives would be better and happier because I was a part of them.

I hope these examples of personal "why" statements inspire you to reconsider yours. What is the basic drive in your life?

Here is my personal answer.

What is my personal "why" in life?

Here's a short version of my personal "why" statement:

"Worth."

To explain what that means, I have to go back in time. Actually, I have to dig through my happiness journals.

On July 17, 2014, I wrote a journal entry that ended up going off topic and ranting about how lucky I was. I wrote this:

"Seriously, I've been very lucky in my life so far. I have great parents and financial security. As a result, I've gotten a solid education, friends, security, hobbies, and can move around easily. More importantly, I haven't had any major setbacks in my life so far.

This makes me think: Am I worth it? Do I really deserve all these things? More importantly, how can I make sure that I really deserve everything I've had?

Just appreciating what I have is definitely NOT enough. No way. I want to give something back to my parents and make them happy. I want to help other people as much as they have helped me in the past. The most important thing is that I want to have a positive impact in the world.

When I think about it, I need to be the best version of myself that I can be. I have to use my full potential.

But what is my potential? I believe that I can do many good things in my life. I am smart, physically fit and mentally healthy (I think). But why? Because I've been very lucky in the past. Luck has provided me with many potential opportunities, and if I want to make it "pay off," I must make sure that I don't let those opportunities go to waste. There are people with fewer opportunities (also known as less fortunate) who still manage to make an incredible impact on the world by realizing their full potential. I have to do the same I have to be worth it.

I eat?

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• Giving my "happiness" to others as much as possible.
• By "prepaying" it.
• By not letting my opportunities go to waste.
• Appreciating everything I have and not just taking it for granted.
• Being the best person I can.

I don't believe in karma, but if I do, it basically comes down to accumulating as much positive karma as possible. That's how I can be worth it."

Even though I wrote this years ago, I still feel the same about my life. At the time, I didn't bother with my wording. Instead, I just wrote down everything that went through my head.

But now, after giving it a little more time, I have redefined my personal "why" in life in this way:

To be worth all that I have been given and have the most positive impact possible in the world.

💡by the way: If you want to feel better and more productive, here we've combined information from hundreds of our articles into a 10-step mental health cheat sheet.👇

Download our FREE mental self-care cheat sheet!

Thrive under stress and achieve your goals with these 10 instant mental health tips.

Download the FREE cheat sheet here

To involve

There you go. There are many different reasons for doing the things you do in life, but they generally follow the same basic driving force. If someone were to start questioning your actions (why are you doing this? why this? why that?), you would eventually need to be able to go back to your main "why" statement. If you've made it to the end of this article, I hope you know how to define your own personal "why."

I would love to hear from you now! What is your "why" in life? What drives you to do the things you do every day when you really think about it? Let's share more examples in the comments below!