Now What? Finding Purpose Through Uncertainty
“Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am.” — Parker J. Palmer
Someone I mentor recently learned that his job in communications might soon become obsolete. He’d finished his university degree, worked hard for several years building his skills and was now facing the possibility that his entire field could disappear. The question on his mind was profound and raw — “Now what?"
It’s a question that surfaces for many of us when the ground shifts beneath our feet. When things end unexpectedly — when we lose a role or a sense of direction — we’re left standing in the in-between space of what was and what’s next. It’s uncomfortable, even frightening. Yet with a growth mindset (the belief that we can learn and grow through challenge), we can begin to reframe the narrative — to see endings not as closures but as openings. Windows and doors, no matter how small, that reveal possibilities we hadn’t yet considered.
In those moments, the practice is to slow down and listen — not to the noise of fear or urgency, but to the subtle cues of what’s stirring within. It’s not about rushing to decide what comes next or mapping out the perfect plan. It’s about noticing what draws our curiosity, what feels alive and what the world might be asking of us now. Often, purpose begins there — in the attention we bring to change.
When I started paying attention to how purpose actually shows up in people’s lives, I realized it’s often completely ordinary. Purpose isn’t always about self-sacrifice or grand gestures. The artist working in her studio isn’t necessarily thinking about humanity’s legacy. The researcher deep in data isn’t always focused on serving an abstract human end. What matters is the dedication to the pursuit itself — the showing up, the staying with it.
Still, some believe purpose is a luxury of the successful — something tied to wealth, education or status. But that’s not what I see. Purpose appears in all kinds of lives and circumstances and it looks different for everyone.Too often, young people are told, “You have to find your purpose.” That well-intentioned advice can create pressure, implying that purpose is a single destination to be reached by a certain age. But purpose doesn’t arrive on command — it grows through experience. When young people witness purpose-driven work firsthand, they begin to build curiosity about what their own calling might look like. Watching others make a difference matters.
Take the examples below. Take the examples below. These two children saw compassion modeled in small, everyday ways — and in turn, found their own ways to express it. They remind us that purpose is rarely found in isolation. It takes shape through human connection, through role models who embody care and through the moments when kindness becomes visible.
At age five, Nicholas Lowinger visited a homeless shelter with his mother and saw children without shoes. By twelve, he’d started the Gotta Have Sole® Foundation, which has since donated footwear to more than 100,000 homeless children across the U.S.
At age eight, a boy named Mateo Nicasio from the Chicago area was riding with his mother when he noticed a woman selling candy at a stoplight. Without hesitation, he handed her all of his birthday money — $23 — saying he wanted to help her buy what she needed. As reported by ABC and People magazine, the moment went viral because of the sincerity of his compassion.
We also learn from those whose purpose is inseparable from moral vision — people who remind us what conviction in action looks like over a lifetime. Take Jane Goodall, whose lifelong work with chimpanzees reshaped our understanding of empathy and the interconnection between species. Consider Dr. Paul Farmer, who revolutionized global health through his unwavering commitment to bringing medical care to the world’s poorest communities. (As it happened, witnessing Dr. Farmer’s work in action in Rwanda profoundly shaped my own sense of purpose and later inspired my work with Mindfulness Without Borders.)
These examples illuminate what’s possible when purpose and moral conviction reinforce one another. Yet they also remind us of the care required to keep purpose rooted in ethics — especially when ambition or success begins to cloud intention.
Upon reflection, the young person I mentor doesn’t need to reclaim his purpose right away — for now, it’s enough to stay rooted in the values and qualities that have carried him this far. Trusting in himself, staying true to what matters, and engaging thoughtfully with others will allow what’s meaningful to unfold in its own time. Perhaps that’s the deeper work: meeting life’s uncertainty with awareness, perseverance, and heart.
And perhaps that’s the reminder we all need — to keep faith in the unfolding. In these complex times, when so many are losing jobs or facing seismic shifts in their fields, purpose isn’t something to chase — it’s how we live into what’s next.
