Did you know that setting goals will increase your performance and productivity by 11-25%?

This means that if you create the proper goals, you can get what now takes you 4 hours to do done in 1 hour!

What takes you 1 hour to do will only take you 15 minutes!

Is this getting you as excited and motivated to create some goals for 2024 as it did for me?!?

I thought so!

In this article, I'm going to share with you the key component that ensures your feel inspired, resilient, and fulfilled as you pursue your goals.

As we come to the end of 2023, you are in, or resonate more, with one of two spaces when thinking about 2024.

1) Excited to create your goals for 2024, and are super stoked to get started.

2) Exhausted from the holidays, and thinking about your goals for 2024 is overwhelming.

Both have their advantages and things to watch out for.

The second scenario also has its advantages and things to watch out for

Your unique meaning and purpose is your guiding light that leads you to what you have come to do this world to create. When you align with this formidable life force, you will have the energy, knowledge, and resilience to create whatever you choose.

That said, knowing your life's purpose can be challenging to discover. Our society has made it harder than ever to stay connected to your unique meaning and purpose.

When you entered this reality as a child, you were the raw expression of yourself. Unfiltered and free to express and explore with insatiable curiosity.

This unique energetic frequency that makes you, you - has never existed and will never exist beyond you. Your specific DNA is ONE OF A KIND - never to be seen again! This is precisely why you must share yourself with the world. The world is not complete without your unique expression.

As a child in the proper environment, you would have been encouraged to explore and nurture this unique essence of yourself.

Unfortunately, due to societal conditioning, you were most likely told who and what you should be. Go to school, get good grades, go to college, get a good job, find a partner, have children, save for retirement, and then start doing things you enjoy.

This one-size-fits-all template that we hear repeatedly creates a lot of noise and makes it harder to hear, connect, and trust that inner voice that is you.

The good news is there is a lot you can do to reestablish that connection and nurture it.

You can re-establish the connection to your inner voice and align it with your passion & purpose.

Two exercises are super helpful.

1) Childhood Reflection for Purpose

2) The List of Curiosity for Passion

In Robert Greene's book, "Mastery," he offers a helpful exercise to discover your purpose. He advises you to reflect on your childhood and recall what you enjoyed. Activities that you would get lost in. Things you'd daydream about. Interests that you had, even obsessions.

Focus on the youngest version of yourself that you can remember since it is the least affected by societal conditioning. It can be helpful to ask a family member, parent, brother, or sister what you enjoyed. Look at family albums, pictures, or videos to help trigger memories if they are available. Your goal is to find a thread you can start to pull on.

In Steven Kotler's book, "Art of Impossible," he speaks about following your curiosity to find your passion. The consciousness of curiosity is precisely the consciousness that we had as children. As children, we wanted to touch and experience everything. We engaged and explored things that held our attention and disregarded things that did not.

He invites his readers to undergo a specific exercise to tap into their passion.

Step 1) Make a list of 25 things that you are currently curious about.

This can be anything, but they must be specific. Come up with 25 different things that pique your interest to explore, even if it is a slight interest.

Step 2) Look for intersections, connections, or overlaps of the 25 things on your list.

This can be a direct correlation or an indirect one. You may have an interest in Greek Mythology as well as being a dog lover. These two interests may not seem to overlap but start to consider the overlaps. Maybe you are curious about the way dogs and other animals are represented in many ancient religions and societies and if there is a gateway to spirituality through animals.

Be specific, and look for overlap between 3-4 items on your list. When multiple curiosity streams intersect, you create the necessary conditions for pattern recognition. Humans love pattern recognition, and when this happens, dopamine is released. This enhances learning and progress, fueling passion.

Step 3) Play in these intersections by consuming relative content for 20 minutes a day.

Steven suggests starting with the history of these ideas and learning the "jargon" of these spaces. Watch lectures, videos, and articles that feed these curiosities.

Step 4) Share your passion and what you are learning with others.

This fuels our need for social connection and appreciation, encouraging us to continue fueling our passion. Look for like-minded people and communities that share similar interests and share what you've learned.

Once you've completed these two tasks, Childhood Reflection and List of Curiosity, it's time to connect passion and purpose.

Let’s first distinguish the difference between passion and purpose.

Passion is more focused on YOU. Things that interest you and what you can get lost in.

Purpose is more significant than YOU. It's about creating an impact and making a contribution.

Combining your passion and purpose creates an overarching life mission. This mission becomes the lens that informs you on where to focus AND a filter to weed out distractions.

Looking at your Childhood Reflection & your List of Curiosity, can you come up with a list of 10 Massive Problems that you feel need solutions? Problems that impact our world, a community, or industry destructively? Or ways to move society forward, contribute with your passion & purpose.

Once you list these problems, reflect on them and pay attention to the ones that lite you up.

Here is an example of the ones I've extracted from doing this exercise:

1) Create a new paradigm of healthcare that empowers individuals physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually to create their most fulfilling lives.

2) Support individuals to be more connected to themselves and to trust themselves

3) Live as a Rennasaince Man - channel my Inner Leonardo Da Vinci

These become the canopies encompassing my passion, purpose, and life mission. As I move through life, I use these as a reference point to create my medium and short-term goals. More importantly, it also acts as a filter to help me stay focused and keep the main thing, the main thing.

Over the next few weeks, I will share the following steps, including how to name long, medium, and short-term goals. But before you do that, connecting to the life force uniquely you and aligning with its immense power is essential. This power will give you the clarity, resiliency, and fulfillment you deeply desire.

Honored to be on the journey with you and look forward to seeing your unique contribution to the planet's consciousness.

Creation needs and values you . . . as do I.

Yours in Vitality,

Matt