Tag: Purpose

Defining Success

Published on by erikcpanzer1 Comment

“The accomplishment of an aim or purpose” – Oxford languages

Success is a concept where everyone has the opportunity to define it differently. The beauty of the human race is that no one person is the same and therefore it is most likely that everyone’s definition of success is different.

Due to a lack of knowledge, people make assumptions, they create opinions, and these opinions are only based on their thoughts, their experiences, and when all they have in their head is certain voices, their perspective is very skewed with no empathetic understanding to others journey.

It is important to remember this as you travel on your journey, that no one elses definition of success is the same as yours. For some, it may be internal, for others, it may be external. The most important thing is to know within yourself what success is in your life.

So, What is success for you?

The only person that can answer that question for you, is you. No one else should determine what you consider to be successful. Success can only truly be defined in relation to what you have personally set out to achieve. And to understand what you have set out to achieve, it is critical to know your purpose.

In a results driven world, where numbers, scores, and status are so often used as the measurement for success, without purpose, these are all you really have to assess your achievement. When you have a higher purpose, what is seen on the surface to the public eye becomes irrelevant to the journey you are on.

Here’s a little story:

I once took a class at University where in my final exam I got a score of 38/100. After initial disappointment, I realized something, that my definition of success was not about the score that I had gotten, it was actually about all that I had learned. In that class, I started with a knowledge base of near zero, whereas most my classmates started with a knowledge base of over 50, so it is only understandable that when the professor came to mark our final exam, my knowledge was considerably lower than everyone elses. So I wrote an email and said this, “if you are going to grade me on what I have achieved, I have failed, but if you are going to grade me on what I have learned, then I have passed”. The professor never responded to that email….but I passed the class.

As I’ve continued to grow in this life, this has been a poignant moment to reflect upon and show me that my definition of success is about what I learn and the journey that I am on, rather than the results I achieve.

Success is the person I am becoming through the journey that I am on.

I have discovered my purpose and I follow that everyday. It reflects in my actions, in my decisions, and therefore it allows me to measure my own success and no one else.

I encourage you, whatever industry you are in, whatever path you are on, to clearly define your purpose for your life, your reason for being, to enable you to accurately measure success in your life. Don’t let society define it for you.

Find your purpose and you’ll find your way

Identity – What You Do Is Not Who You Are

Published on by erikcpanzer

Who are you?

I challenge you to answer that question without mentioning what you do for work…Try it, it’s not easy!

That question, usually when it’s answered, it outlines ones identity.

For athletes, this answer can show that their identity is confined to their sport. The same applies to any other persons job; a teacher, doctor, business person, cleaner, check out clerk, etc.

Through committing so much time and energy to your job, it leads to this attachment, and you begin identifying yourself with your job.

So, what happens when your job isn’t going well? You’d probably tell me that life isn’t going well. And the same goes for the opposite, if your job is going well, your life is going well.

This shouldn’t be the case. I believe that these are two different aspects of ones lifes. Your job is only a portion of your identity. Yes it plays a role in it, but it is not the main identifier of an individual.

Your job is what you do, it is not who you are.

Being able to accept this and separate the two things can be incredibly challenging.

You are you; no tag, no attachment, before you are anything else. Just you, your characteristics, and your behaviours.

To help separate your job and your identity, I encourage you to establish yourself outside of your sport or work. Take the time to step back from your sport or work and look at who you really are as a person. Explore what you’re interested in, what you care about, what makes you fulfilled and ensure that these play a large role in your life.

Each day, when you leave the office, school, field, court, etc., are you able to leave it all at the door when you get home?

Finding ways to detach yourself, and not carry the emotion from work with you into the home can be very powerful. It can give yourself freedom to just be you and be fully present with yourself or whoever you are with, because outside of your job, there are so many other important things in your life that you should give your energy and attention to each day.

Who are you going to be when that thing you give so much time to disappears?

You are so much more than your job. So I encourage you to focus on seeking happiness and fulfilment. Embrace your unique set of interests and desires, these are a large part of your identity. And if you’re struggling to find these, if you are lacking purpose or vision for your life outside of your work, let’s talk! I would love to help you onto a journey towards happiness and fulfilment.

Do Better, Be Better

Published on by erikcpanzer3 Comments

In light of Nike’s commercial, Better | Mamba Forever | Nike, it got me thinking about this idea of being better.

What is ‘being better’? What does it consist of? What is the outcome? 

I believe that individual potential is endless. With enough deliberate and intentional development, matched with patience and perseverance, you can become your best at anything. But what is important for you to know is your purpose behind being better.

You don’t know how good you can be, because you’re not there yet, but can you pursue that? Of course you can!
It’s all easy and great to say you’re doing better or being better, but is you being better associated to something you are building towards achieving or are you just saying it because it sounds good? Find that purpose for being better. 

Are we being who we say we want to be and are we doing what we say we want to do? – George Mumford

Having a purpose allows you to build habits to act and behave intentionally towards it every day, and through this you will continue to grow towards maximising your potential, your better version of yourself.

For me, being better is this pursuit of excellence and a thirst for growth. It is this desire every single day to make improvements in various aspects of my life.
I am on a journey every single day to become the best version of myself that I can be. The best brother, son, friend I can be. The best athlete, performance coach, and life mentor I can be. The best person I can be!

With this purpose giving me direction for growth, I then act and behave deliberately towards this purpose in ways that will allow me to make improvements in these areas each and every day.
Every day I take as an opportunity to grow. 
Every training I take as an opportunity to improve my skills.
Every conversation I take as an opportunity to learn something.
Every thought I take as an opportunity to build compassion.

“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” – Maya Angelou

Every day you are in competition with one person and one person only, and that is yourself and who you were yesterday. The more you can truly understand this and apply this to your actions, the more growth you will see towards a better version of yourself.

So I ask you this, why are you being better, and what is you being better leading you to?

What A Time To Be Alive

Published on by erikcpanzer1 Comment

If there is one thing that we can all learn from these unprecedented times, it is that you can find out what is really important to you — what you need, day to day, for your happiness. 

During these current times, so many external things have become so quickly irrelevant. This is a great opportunity to reset yourself and allow yourself to simplify and clarify your life. It is a great time for self-reflection for whatever stage in life you are at. 

Don’t like your job? 

Is your job so good that you wake up each day with an energy, a thirst for the work you do? 

If not, figure out what you feel like will give you that energy and look for those opportunities and apply for those roles. Take that jump. 

Don’t like a certain relationship? 

Does your relationship give you life and excitement, a sense of adventure, and a lot of love? 

If not, talk about what’s missing, address the issues, or just step away. Don’t let it drag you down away from happiness. 

Don’t like what you’re studying? 

Are you studying something you care about? Do you get excited to learn about this topic each day? 

If not, change majors or programs. Find what you are really passionate about and study it, engross yourself in it. Let that give you a reason for waking up each day. 

Don’t like where you are living? 

Is your environment, your home, your surroundings giving you the ability to be free, creative and thrive? Or, Is it holding you back from living a life that you truly enjoy? 

If not, find somewhere that fosters creativity and freedom to allow you to thrive and give you purpose each day.  

Don’t like who you have become? 

Are you not happy with who you are, what you are doing or where you are going? Do you feel like you’ve become someone you don’t want to be? 

Isolate yourself with your thoughts, your visions. Brainstorm your purpose, find some meaning in your life, discover your passions, discover your reason for being and let that guide you to who you wish to be.  

Yes, I understand that for each of these points there are challenges and unknowns, especially financially. To make such decisions in these times can be uncomfortable, but being uncomfortable during chaos is where the most growth occurs. 

It is a time to step away from fear, and begin to move towards happiness.

The greatest thing you can do in isolation is disconnect and take some time with YOU; sit with yourself, your thoughts, your visions, your dreams. Step away from all other influences and find out about yourself on a new level. Discover your passions, your purpose, and begin on your adjusted journey, whether you decide to take a new path is up to you. 

When we come through the other side of this, you will know yourself better, your path will be clearer, your life will be simpler, and living a life of happiness should be easier. 

What having all this time has done for some is to spend more time with their kids, their families, more than they usually would. 

For others, it has given them time to reconnect with old friends, near or far. 

And most importantly, for many, it has allowed them to get creative, work on personal projects, chase their passions and do things they really enjoy. These are things that often get put to the side, as work takes priority, when they really should be front and center of what we do. 

These are three things that can make us feel more alive, more fulfilled. They make us feel happy. 

Take as much or as little from this blog, but no matter how much you take from it, I hope that your life will become richer because of it. 

Peace and love

I understand this is a challenging time. If you need someone to talk to, please reach out to me. Whether it is to help you discover your purpose, learn how to be comfortable being alone with yourself, or just to chat about life, I am always willing to talk, discuss and assist.