132 Who Do You Think You Are?
have really been upset for the cat, and now I’m really happy that the
maggots have something to eat. So I had attained a state of pure joy,
where I was deeply appreciating whatever reality presented itself, an
experience that everything is perfect just the way it is.
Then in 1984, I read a book called You Can Have It All by Arnold
Patent. In that book he had a written exercise for identifying and
articulating your life purpose. The first step was to come up with two
qualities and that you most enjoy expressing, and I wrote down love and
joy. Then he asked, what are two ways that you most enjoy expressing
those qualities? I wrote down inspiring and empowering people. Then
he said, imagine the world was perfect from your point of view. What
would be happening? And I wrote down, everyone would be living their
highest vision. I’ve always believed that when people are living their
highest vision—not their parents’, society’s or their teachers’ vision—
then the world would work.
It’s like everyone is a cell in the body we call humanity, and
when every cell is performing its unique function perfectly, then the whole
body functions perfectly. It would be as if you were a liver cell, and I
were a kidney cell, and Michael Beckwith were a heart cell, and Raymond
Aaron were a brain cell, and if everyone were fully being themselves
with no holdbacks, then the body would work perfectly. And to carry
that metaphor out to the world, if everyone fully lived their highest vision,
the world would work perfectly as well.
The last thing that Arnold Patent said to do was combine all of
those previous parts into one sentence. So I ended up with “to inspire
and empower people to live their highest vision in the context of love
and joy.” For 22 years now, that has been my stated life purpose, my
deepest sense of myself, and what guides all of my behavior. I literally
ask myself, is this project going to inspire and empower people to live
their highest vision? If the answer is yes and I feel drawn to it, I’ll
participate. If it doesn’t, I won’t.
If you could give advice to those who are still searching for their
life’s purpose, what would it be?
Number one would be to look over your life both past and present and
notice when you experienced the most joy. You see, I believe and teach
that we all have an inner guidance system and it’s our experience of joy.
So when you’re experiencing joy in the work you do, joy in your
relationships, you’re on track. You’re on purpose. When you’re walking