Pursuing Your Personal Legend

The author Paulo Coelho is a master at weaving life lessons into his stories, crafting novels that not only entertain but also enlighten. 

In his book ‘The Alchemist’, Paulo guides us on the journey of a young boy pursuing his personal legend - an adventure that promises the ultimate reward of self-fulfilment through self-discovery.

Insight:

Your personal legend is going after the thing that you most dream of doing in your life. It’s achieving everything you suspect you’re capable of.

From a spiritual perspective, it’s your destiny. From a religious perspective, it’s the path God has written for you.

We all have a unique personal legend, giving us all a unique path to fulfilment.

In the modern day, we often describe this inner force as our ‘calling’. However, the difference is that a calling is driven by a sense of duty to serve a need in the world, whereas a personal legend is more of an inner quest to follow our heart’s desires.

The Personal Legend as described by other authors:

• In his book ‘Mastery’, Robert Greene writes that masters throughout history have described an inner force that guided their work, and that everything naturally falls into place as we follow this inner force - our ‘Life’s Task’.

• Josh Watizkin also defines this force in ‘The Art of Learning’ as a deep feeling of resonance with the discipline that calls you.

• In ‘The Hero With a Thousand Faces’, Joseph Campbell likens this process to that of heroes on their journey. In pursuit of our personal legends, we learn new things about ourselves and discover hidden strengths, transforming us into our most fulfilled, heroic self.

Beauty in the struggle:

Each curveball we face is part of a resistance that we have to overcome to fulfil our personal legend. In ‘The Alchemist’, before the young boy’s dream is realised, everything he learned along the way is tested. This is to ensure that, in addition to realising his dream, he also masters the lessons he learned.

As painful as our struggle can be, we too can be enriched by the obstacles, mistakes, and failures on our journey towards our ultimate goal.

After all, the pain of living with a dream you’re not chasing is worse than the pain of the struggle. Either way, there will be pain - so we may as well choose the path of deepest fulfilment.

Tool 1: How do we discover our personal legend?

Our personal legend is not something we find fully formed. It is formed by taking action after action. And our understanding of it evolves as we progress along the journey.

1. Reflect on your childhood: Our inner voice is strongest as children because we’re not yet conditioned by the expectations of society. Think back to what you loved to do, and consider what’s unique about you - your personality quirks, character traits, and obsessions.

2. Embrace the non-linear path: We’re unlikely to find the perfect path from the start, but if we follow our interests, we’ll move in the right direction.

3. Listen to feedback: Are there signs that you’re uniquely suited to this type of activity? What actions of yours are being rewarded by others?

Tool 2: How do we pursue our personal legend?

1. Separation from the world we have always known: This is often met with initial reluctance, but is necessary for growth and transformation. This could come in the form of travel, a pilgrimage, or an escape to nature.

2. Crossing into the unknown: By taking risks in the face of fear and entering our Zone of Discomfort, we expand our perspective, skills, and confidence.

3. Following your heart: The things that make you feel most alive, inspired, and curious. “You will never be able to escape from your heart, so it’s better to listen to what it has to say.” - Paulo Coelho

Without the destination, there could be no journey. But we don’t need to wait for the ending to feel complete. Each day we spend truly pursuing our personal legend is a day of true fulfilment. And each lesson we learn along the way teaches us more about ourselves and our place in this world.

Prompt:

In every activity, notice how much enthusiasm you feel. When you lack enthusiasm, acknowledge that you aren’t moving in the direction of your personal legend. When you feel enthusiasm, appreciate that you are - and allow it to propel you forwards.

Resources on Pursuing Your Personal Legend:

Written by Dr Manu Sidhu 🩺

If you’re interested in hearing founders, investors, and experts explain how technology is being leveraged to improve mind health, check out the MindTech Podcast, also hosted by Dr Manu Sidhu.

The most recent episode covers a startup taking on one of the most important yet complicated problems in mental health: long waiting lists for therapy. Not only is Dr Julian Nesbitt tackling this problem, but he is doing so in the NHS - a notoriously difficult organisation to innovate in.

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