Exactly How To Find Your Purpose, According To A Happiness Expert

According to decades of research, there are few things more important to mental stamina than having a sense of purpose. A 2009 study found that the importance of purpose starts in early childhood, and that teaching kids to find a sense of meaning leads not only to improved grades but a decreased risk of depression later in life.

And when it comes to cultivating resilience, purpose is key: One large study found that the ability to find meaning from life's experiences predicts a greater ability to bounce back from negative life events. Another study conducted earlier this year found that people over the age of 60 are less likely to suffer from restless leg syndrome and have better sleep quality overall when they feel a strong sense of purpose.

While journaling on questions to clarify your purpose can certainly help, Lesser's No. 1 suggestion is to reframe what purpose means to you. "If you think the perfect job is out there waiting for you, and that unless you find it you will never live 'on purpose,' you're in for a disappointing journey," she explains. "I've met people with jobs you might envy—accomplished artist, published author, CEO, famous chef, to name a few—whose work brings them more stress than joy, more pain than purpose."

Interestingly, Lesser finds that finding purpose in one area of your life causes you to find purpose in other areas of your life. "For me, the result of feeling on-purpose in my work as a writer and a conference-convener and organization leader has made me want to feel on-purpose in everything I do," she says. "I no longer look to a specific job I am doing to give me a sense of purpose. Instead I look to myself to bring purpose to everything I am doing—being with a friend who is ill, taking care of my grandchildren, responding to a reader who has read one of my books. Every moment has its own sacred purpose."