Ours is an era of quantum change,
the most radical deconstruction and reconstruction the world has seen.
~ Jean Houston
Approaching the apex of our youthful years, disillusionment spreads like molten lava, burning up all that is not real. It is the primary task of midlife to confront our “reality” and to let go of cherished illusions like the childhood motto, “Follow the Golden Rule and nothing bad will happen to you.” Or our Pollyannaish belief that our dearest ones will never betray or leave us.
Or that good always prevails over evil.
Perhaps the hardest of all to swallow are the dreams never realized, the opportunities now lost to our receding youth—the “never will bes” and the “if only’s.”
Photo by Javier Allegue via Unsplash
Midlife disillusionment is poignantly expressed by a 61-year-old male client who beseeches me with, “I did everything I was supposed to: I rose to the top of my field, earned seven, even eight figures, traveled the world and had my pick of women. I got everything I wanted and I still don’t have what I need!”
Whatever our challenges, both personally and collectively, we are all searching for ways to recognize our Soul’s purpose—to find meaning in our everyday lives and to move in the direction of our destiny. Many of us are asking, “What really matters? Is this all there is? What is our purpose here? How can we lead effectively—and keep our Soul intact—during turbulent as well as good times?
Visionary Leaders with Wrinkles have a sense of larger purpose and balance as they age and morph from lives of self-accomplishment to an even more enriching life of Soul-based greatness. These visionaries (like you and me) are seeking to not only achieve but to positively transform themselves and their world…locally and around the globe.
Don’t get me wrong, finding your Soul’s purpose and embracing your Signature Greatness DNA are not solely for the rarefied few. We are all capable of the same precious gift of living our destiny. It’s a matter of choice, or staying on your quest to the Ageless Way until you embody your own unique Signature Greatness DNA. Now, with the gift of wisdom and a long life lived, I have come to understand that each of us is born on this planet with our potential for greatness intact.
Unfortunately, somewhere along our early life paths, we tend to lose our birthright and most of us miss our calling… only to spend our Third and Fourth Age trying to recover and reclaim our innate greatness.
Psychologist Rollo May (1909-1994), in describing his times, provided applicable insight and forewarning about our current times. His words caution us that we, like his clients, are reflections of our times: “The signs of the times is that the ‘nothingness’ (the lack of meaning) in their lives that drives so many of my clients into therapy equals a ‘cry for myth, the cry for pattern, for meaning.’”
Through the challenges of our days, we are being called to discover our true purpose, to unleash our unique Signature Greatness, and to bring who we are to our communities, workplaces and families.
We are being called to find out what is most essential and true to each of us – and to share that with the world.
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