Tips for Finding Your Life Purpose找到人生目标的秘诀

丹尼尔·斯科特/文　张成伟/译

I began my professional career as an estate-planning attorney， who worked with the super wealthy and helped them plan for their death while avoiding paying as many taxes as possible. Death and taxes are famously said to be the only two certainties in life.

我的職业生涯始于遗产规划律师，我为超级富豪工作，帮助他们准备身后事，尽可能避免缴纳税款。众所周知，死亡和纳税是人生中唯二无法避免的大事。

Funny， because I believe that life and purpose are equally as inevitable.

我觉得这个说法很好笑，因为我认为人生和目标同样不可回避。

While many believe that money and death are two taboo subjects that families do not like to discuss， even more taboo in my experience are conversations about the meaning of life or one’s life purpose. I cannot think of anything more important than finding one’s life purpose. I believe in its importance so much that I traded in my estate-planning hat1 some years ago to build a business that helps individuals discover their life purpose and design a life that ensures its fulfillment. I have spent most of my life and professional career pondering this very issue and asking the question： What does life purpose mean and， more importantly， how does one find and fulfill it？

虽然许多人认为金钱和死亡是家人间不喜欢讨论的两个禁忌话题，但根据我的经验，更忌讳的是谈论人生的意义或人生的目标。我想不出比找到人生目标更重要的事了。我对它的重要性深信不疑，以至于几年前我放弃了遗产规划师的工作，转而成立一家公司，帮助人们找到他们的人生目标，并规划一种确保目标实现的人生。在我人生以及职业生涯的大部分时间里，我一直在思考人生目标，也一直在问这样一个问题：人生目标意味着什么，更重要的是，人们如何找到并实现自己的人生目标？

It has been a long journey getting to this point， and here is what I have learned so far along the way.

为得到答案，我已经历一段漫长的旅程。以下是我在途中学到的秘诀。

1. Your life purpose is bigger than any solvable problem or circumstance.

1. 人生目标比任何可以解决的问题或客观环境都宏大。

Your life purpose cannot be solving a particular problem or based on some circumstance that could potentially no longer exist. Otherwise， your purpose could end while you are alive and then your life will no longer have a purpose or meaning. For example， some may believe that finding the cure for cancer is their life purpose. Finding the cure for cancer may embody their life purpose and be a major accomplishment along their journey， but their life purpose is bigger and beyond cancer. The same is true of being a doctor or scientist. Nobody is “born to be” a doctor or scientist， but their life purpose may be fulfilled through that profession， at least for some time. Understanding the difference between your life purpose and opportunities that fulfill your life purpose is important because life circumstances and opportunities will change over time. That does not mean， however， that your purpose ceases to exist.

人生目标不能是解决一个特定的问题，也不能基于某种可能不再存在的情况。否则，你的目标可能会在你有生之年终止，你此后的人生将不再有目标或意义。例如，有些人可能认为找到治愈癌症的方法是他们的人生目标。找到治愈癌症的方法可能包含在他们的人生目标中，是他们人生之旅中的一项重大成就，但他们的人生目标更宏大，超越了找到治愈癌症的方法。成为医生或科学家也是如此。没有人“天生就是”医生或科学家，但他们的人生目标可能会通过职业实现，至少在一段时间内如此。了解人生目标与实现人生目标的机遇之间有何区别很重要，因为生活环境和机遇会随着时间的推移而改变。然而，这并不意味着你的目标不复存在。

2. Your life purpose is a journey， not a destination.

2. 人生目标是一段旅程，而不是一个目的地。

Your life purpose is not something you can define today， nor is it something you will ever fully know or accomplish during your lifetime. Only in hindsight2， once your life has ended， will we have the full picture to be able to look back and say， “This is what that person’s life meant.” If we are unable to know what our life purpose is in advance， however， how do we live in pursuit of fulfilling it？ How do we design our lives and make the best choices that will lead to fulfilling our life purpose？ The answer is that we work with the pieces of the puzzle that we have and follow life’s clues.

人生目标不是你今天就可以定义的，也不是你有生之年能完全了解或实现的。只有在你的生命结束后，我们回顾过去才能了解你完整的人生，才能说出：“这就是他（她）的人生意义。”然而，如果我们不能提前知道自己的人生目标，我们又该如何为实现它而生活呢？我们该如何规划人生，并作出最好的选择来实现人生目标？答案是，我们要利用已有的拼图碎片并遵循人生给出的线索。

3. Play to your strengths.

3. 发挥长处。

We are not capable of being all things to all people3. You were born with certain natural talents and abilities—use them. Develop your natural talents into skills by studying， exercising and practicing those talents. There is nothing wrong with trying to learn new things， but the likelihood is that you were born with the abilities needed to fulfill your life purpose.

我們不可能做到八面玲珑。你生来具备某些天赋和能力——利用它们吧。通过学习、锻炼和实践，把你的天赋发展成技能。尝试学习新事物没有错，但很可能你天生就具备实现人生目标所需的能力。

4. Pursue your passions.

4. 追随激情。

For whatever reason， we all feel passionate about certain things in life. In order to live your life purpose， you must become completely immersed in whatever it is， which means it must be something you are passionate about. Otherwise， you will be damned to doing something that ultimately makes you miserable and resentful， in which case it will be impossible to perform at the highest level. Your purpose cannot be something you will resent or resist doing， which leads to my next point.

无论出于何种原因，我们都对生活中的某些事物充满激情。为了实现人生目标，你必须完全沉浸其中，这意味着那必须是你热爱的东西。否则，你将被迫做一些最终让你痛苦和怨恨的事情。在这种情形下，你就不可能发挥出你的最高水平。你的目标不能是你反感或抗拒做的事情，这就引出了下一个秘诀。

5. Do what makes you happy.

5. 做让你开心的事。

Living your life purpose will undoubtedly bring you joy and a sense of personal fulfillment. Ask a roomful of people what the meaning of life is and most answers will come back to happiness. Positive Psychology—the study of happiness or well-being—ascribes five elements to well-being： positive feelings， engagement， relationships， meaning （or purpose） and accomplishments （commonly referred to by the acronym “PERMA”）. Each of these elements is naturally achieved and increased when you commit to living in pursuit of your life purpose.

實现人生目标无疑会给你带来快乐和个人成就感。如果问一屋子的人他们人生的意义是什么，大多数人的答案都会归结到幸福。积极心理学——研究幸福或快乐的一门学科——把幸福归纳为五大要素：积极感受、参与、关系、意义（或目标）和成就（通常用首字母缩写PERMA来表示）。当你致力于追求自己的人生目标，这五大要素中的每一个都会自然而然地得以实现和提升。

6. Go where you are needed.

6. 去需要你的地方。

Opportunity is the most revealing4 clue to living your life purpose. A purpose， after all， must be served. There is a need for you to fill that you must discover. The opportunities you have in life are how the world tells you where you are needed. The trick is making sure that you choose the opportunities that best align with your talents， skills and passions. Opportunity is tricky because often you must instigate opportunity. In other words， some doors require you to knock （and sometimes more than once） before you realize they are open. Nevertheless， whether that door ultimately opens requires someone letting you in—the final decision of which is always beyond your control.

机会是实现人生目标最具启示性的线索。毕竟，目标必须实现。你必须找到需要你去满足的需求。你在生活中拥有的机会就是世界在告诉你哪里需要你。诀窍是确保你选择的机会最符合你的才能、技能和喜好。机会是让人捉摸不定的，因为你往往必须主动创造机会。换句话说，有些门需要你主动去敲（有时不止敲一次），然后你才能意识到门开了。然而，那扇门最终是否会打开，取决于是否有人让你进去——最终决定总是在你的控制范围之外。

7. Focus on what you can control.

7.专注于可以掌控的事情。

If there is one lesson I have lived repeatedly in my life， it is that there is only one thing you can control： yourself. No matter how hard you try， no matter how much your actions may be based on intended or expected outcomes， you absolutely cannot control the results of your actions. All that we can do in life is put forth our best efforts. That means cultivating your mind， body and spirit to achieve your greatest potential and always acting with the best of intentions. The path to living your purpose is paved with good intentions and continual self-improvement.

如果说一条我在生活中屡屡感悟的经验，那就是你能掌控的只有你自己。无论你多么努力，无论你的行动在多大程度上基于预期的结果，你都绝对无法控制行动的结果。我们在生活中能做的就是尽自己最大的努力。这意味着提升你的思想、身体和精神，以发挥你最大的潜力，并始终以最强烈的意愿行事。实现目标的道路由良好的意愿和不断的自我完善铺就。

8. Embrace your creativity.

8. 拥抱你的创造力。

We are all capable of producing something that is both original and of value to the world. Those two components—originality and value—make up the definition of creativity. I am not talking about being artistic， which is one form of creativity. I am talking about tapping into5 the unique lens through which you view the world and the value your perspective can add. Of course， when you focus on cultivating your talents and immerse yourself in what you are passionate about， creativity comes easily.

我们都有能力创造出既有独创性又对世界有价值的东西。这两个组成部分——独创性和价值——构成了创造力的定义。我不是在谈论艺术，虽然艺术确实是创造力的一种形式。我说的是利用你看待世界的独特视角，以及你这视角能够带来的价值。当然，当你专注于提升自己的才能，沉浸在自己热爱的事物中时，创造力很容易产生。

9. Listen to your Muse.

9. 倾听缪斯之声。

You do not choose your purpose in life any more than you choose your ideas. The creative process has always fascinated me because it feels so unintentional. You do not choose to create something; you are compelled to create something. Whether it is a melody， painting， invention or business idea， the idea just seems to come to you from some magical place that feels equally a part of you as it does separate. It is like looking in a mirror and suddenly your reflection is telling you to say or do something. I call this your Muse because it is your source of inspiration.

你不能选择人生目标，同样也不能选择自己的想法。创作的过程一直让我着迷，因为感觉非常随心所欲。你不是选择创造什么，而是感觉必须创造什么。无论是一首歌、一幅画、一项发明，还是一个商业创意，这个想法似乎是从某个神奇的地方来到你的身边，它好像既是你的一部分，又独立于你而存在。就像照镜子，镜子里的你突然告诉你要说什么或做什么。我称之为缪斯女神，因为它是灵感的源泉。

Get to know your Muse. Try to identify what your Muse is saying through you， what it is expressing and stands for. Most importantly， when your Muse speaks， listen. I cannot tell you the number of times I have had to pull the car over to write down an idea that just came to me. These are important moments. Pay very close attention.

你要了解你的缪斯女神。试着去理解缪斯通过你在诉说什么、表达什么、代表什么。最重要的是，当你的缪斯女神说话时，你要倾听。我说不清有多少次不得不靠边停车，写下我刚刚冒出的一个想法。这些都是重要的时刻。一定要多加重视。

（譯者单位：常州信息职业技术学院）

1 hat职位；角色。

2 hindsight事后的领悟，此处指人们回顾逝者的一生。  3 be all things to all people〈习语〉使人人高兴；八面玲珑。

4 revealing透露内情的；有启迪作用的。

5 tap into利用，开发，挖掘（已有的资源、知识等）。