Choose Purpose Over Comfort. Purpose Brings Meaning; Comfort is Temporary.

Comfort is temporary; the purpose is liberating.

“Your purpose in life is to find your purpose and give your whole heart and soul to it.” — Buddha

A Discomforting Meeting with God

I do not fear God.

I respect God.

I recall my younger days when I used to visit our deity to offer prayers and seek blessings.

The temple was far from the city, and the mode of commuting was not convenient. Moreover, the infrastructure to reach that place was difficult and time-consuming.

Since then, things have changed for the better.

I remember one specific trip from those younger days. As I was about to take the bus ride, I could choose a convenient jeep ride instead.

Something inside me raised a voice — “Take the uncomfortable choice.”

And I heard that voice and took the filthy, hot, crowded bus instead. The weather was hot, which made the trip ‘brave’ and ‘stupid.’

As I got down at the temple, I looked back at my choice and entered the deity's room with a smile.

I had opted for purpose than for comfort.

That decision and the discomfort stayed with me for a long time. And as my morning journal brought out the topic of ‘purpose,’ my mind brought back this story and taught me a new lesson.

Discomfort is Satisfying.

Yes, when resources become ample, there comes a desire to be comfortable. To spend a bit more and find comfort.

But it’s often required and necessary that we question this desire for comfort and then recall the purpose.

• Knowledge is a purpose. A physical book or a costly Kindle is a choice.
• Health is a purpose. A premium fitness club membership or being part of your community’s outdoor run club is a choice.
• Respect and prayer are a purpose.
• Entertainment is a purpose. Whether we choose to go for a fancy vacation or spend time with family is a choice.

The meaning of discomfort can be different for you and me. But whenever I choose to question the comfortable choice and assign more weightage to the purpose, the resulting experience is always enriching.

The journey felt purposeful and meaningful because of the discomfort, but it also gave me a sense of achievement.

Comfort is easy. Discomfort is tough. But it’s liberating.

Commute, Comfort, and Purpose

Commuting is a basic need. The purpose is to reach our workplace comfortably and be ready for our best work throughout the day.

When our commutes are full of traffic jams, road rage, honking, a discomforting passenger, etc., the purpose remains incomplete, and we carry a lot of baggage at the workplace.

But when we control the situation, the purpose invariably serves its purpose.

As we go resourceful, comfort takes priority. An air-conditioned car ride makes way for the cheap train and bus.

Commuting to work entails a bigger purpose.

The purpose is to learn.

We spend at least 1–1.5 hours daily on our commute. When we add the purpose of “learning” to these hours, our purpose of giving our best at the workplace sees a big uplift.

I commute for an average of 150 minutes on weekdays. And, through time and trying different things to fill these commuting hours with learning and knowledge, I have built a strong habit of cutting myself away from the external noise and spend a majority of these 150 minutes either doing meditation or reading from multiple books, or writing on Medium, or working on my next book.

The comfort of driving my car doesn't attract me enough now because I know if I lose the purpose of knowledge, the comfort won't yield me much.

Let Purpose be the Driver of Your Life

“Comfort is the enemy of greatness” — Rachel Proctor

In his book The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren says:

“Without a clear purpose you have no foundation on which you base decisions, allocate your time, and use your resources. You will tend to make choices based on circumstances, pressures, and your mood at that moment. People who don’t know their purpose try to do too much — and that causes stress, fatigue, and conflict.”

A study of over 73,000 Japanese people revealed a clear link between Ikigai — a strong psychological connection with one’s sense of purpose — and decreased mortality.

And a US study that followed 6,000 people from a wider age range found the same pattern: People with a greater sense of purpose, as measured in a survey 14 years earlier, outlived their peers. According to the study, “having a purpose in life appears to widely buffer against mortality risk across the adult years.’’

Look around yourself and see what elements serve you towards your purpose and what gives you the choice of comfort.

• If your purpose is to stay active and productive at work, a caffeine rush is a comfort, while ensuring a good night’s sleep is the right solution.
• If your purpose is to complete an urgent work on hand, a sugar kick is a comfort, while eating right and at frequent intervals is the right solution.
• If your purpose is to find happiness, then the dopamine rush created by social media feeds is a comfort, while staying away from your smartphone and spending time with your family is the right solution.
• If your purpose is to become financially independent then the right solution is to invest time in creating a side hustle or learn something new to become better at your work, instead of spending the evening with a scoop of ice cream and in front of the TV.

Closing Thoughts

If you don’t have a purpose, find one.

Not just one; find many purposes.

Because what purpose will stay with you for a long period is a matter of experimentation.

People who are born with a purpose are rare. Rest everyone needs to search for it.

Scoring comfort over purpose is taking a shortcut to a gloomy life. Whether you have the right resources doesn’t matter whether you choose comfort or the path to purpose with those resources matters.

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Nishith is an author and creator of a unique self-development platform — “Be Better Bit-By-Bit.”

Grab your copy of his debut book — Be Better Bit-By-Bit and listen to his podcasts Be Better Bit-By-Bit and 10 Bullets — 100 Words Book Summary.