Finding Your Light Within

3 October 2025 - The Power of Journaling: How Reflection Helps You Find Your True Purpose

Yesterday evening, I contemplated all the work that I've completed since I began to bring myself and my website back. I thought about the completion of my manuscript for Signposts, the efforts involved in redesigning and recreating this website and the amount of work that has gone into learning new tools to create the recent YouTube video shorts. It's been a lot of painstaking, at times frustrating, deeply involved effort that has consumed huge amounts of my time.

Being successful is important. Gaining recognition seems like the ideal achievement. But ultimately, who and why am I doing this?

Why Journaling Unlocks Self-Discovery

My contemplation occurred because I was re-reading a journal entry I had made in March 2004. At that time I was living in Budapest and managing a finance shared service centre at a global IT services corporation. I stumbled upon this piece of writing earlier this year by pure chance and it revealed to me the power of journalling. The entry is included in my manuscript for Signposts because of its significance in the story of my life.

I was rereading the journal because I'm planning and storyboarding a YouTube video on the topic of the importance of journalling and this piece of writing is exhibit number one. It serves as a powerful reminder of why journalling helps to unlock your true identity and uncover your true purpose.

At the end of the journal entry, I document my thinking at the time.

"I am going to take hold of one of my dreams and follow it.  I know now that I am not suited to a life of business career.  The politics and the pettiness do not interest me.  This is not real living.  Real living is being with people, helping people or the planet in a positive way.  I want to contribute to the planet on which we live and find a way to help.  This is my purpose in life, I am sure of it."

Helping people in a positive way. That has been my mission and my drive in writing and producing inspirational videos. It must be so again. Always, it is necessary to refocus on what is the goal. I said to myself that if I can help or influence one person in a positive way, then I will have achieved success. To be reminded of that last night was powerful. I had become a little lost, consumed in the world of YouTube video and channel metrics, Website analytics, KDP sales reports.

If I have helped one person, then my mission has been worth it.

Refocusing on Purpose Through Journaling

Sometimes, it is necessary in life to step back and to look up and remind yourself of where you are headed. With head down and blinkered, lost in the mire of the process, it is easy to lose sight of the true importance and significance of the overall objective. So, what's the trick? Focus on the day to day and the nitty-gritty - yes, you must. But also, look up, look out and remind yourself regularly of the why. And this is the power of journalling. It allows you to refocus on your purpose.