Daily Inspiration from The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari

by Robin Sharma

When I was growing up, my father, translating a Sanskrit saying, shared something with me that I will never forget. He said, “Son, when you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Live your life in such a way that when you die the world cries while you rejoice.” We live in an age when we have forgotten what life is all about. We can easily put a person on the moon, yet we have trouble walking across the street to meet a new neighbor. We have technology to help us stay connected, yet in many ways we have never been less connected in the history of humankind. We know more than ever, yet we also know less, about what it means to be truly great—as a human being.

All too often, people attempt to live their lives backwards: they spend their days striving to get the things that will make them happy rather than having the wisdom to realize that happiness is not a place you reach but a state you create. Happiness and a life of deep fulfillment come when you commit yourself, from the very core of your soul, to spending your highest human talents on a purpose that makes a difference in others’ lives. When all the clutter is stripped away from your life, its true meaning will become clear: to live for something more than yourself. Stated simply, the purpose of life is a life of purpose.

Purpose of life / life of a purpose