Finding Fulfillment in Focusing on the “Why”
The world around us is dizzying with distractions. Some days, I am so busy checking off items from my to-do list—and adding new ones—that I don’t have time to remember or appreciate the very reasons they’re there to begin with.
There’s so much reward in accomplishment when we allow ourselves to fully experience it.
This year, the task of curating the prompts for our fifth(!) annual gratitude challenge came at a time when I was barreling through a barrage of work-related obligations. I was thrilled to be taking on new initiatives to support UG2 at a time when the company is growing and thriving. But the exercise of considering potential themes and categories stopped me in my tracks.
I realized that I had successfully completed so much of what I had set out to do that day, week, and month. Not everything, of course, but I had accomplished plenty. Yet I hadn’t taken the time to focus on the “why” behind what I was doing. I realized that the times when I am overlooking the purpose of my work might be keeping me from being truly fulfilled by it.
As we kick off a month of intentionally making space to feel gratitude, I hope this year’s selection of prompts will help us find some meaning amid the madness.
Here are some examples that might help us refocus:
DAY 1 MOTIVATION
We each have unique people and dreams that drive us and enable us to keep going when we begin to lose steam. Think about a specific person, experience, or even a mantra or quotation that inspires you to aim higher or to press ahead when you encounter an obstacle. Keep that motivator in mind today.
DAY 4 PURPOSE
Finding purpose in life is an incredible gift that informs your sense of self. It promotes focus and shores up your belief in yourself, fuels you in reaching your dreams, and ultimately brings contentment in the small acts and larger accomplishments that make up your days. What was a time when discovering purpose propelled you forward?
DAY 13 WISDOM
We grow wiser with time from lessons learned firsthand but also from the mentoring and insights we glean from those around us. Today, appreciate the generosity of someone who has invested in you by sharing their knowledge or perspective. Think about times you have shared your wisdom with others, and look for ways you can continue to do so.
DAY 18 WORK
Feeling gratitude in our work is not always easy, but even on difficult days, our jobs bring good into our lives. Today, let’s reflect on the ways work buoys us and helps us grow even when we’d rather be elsewhere. Think of a relationship you’ve made or a moment you were proud of how you handled a situation.
Of course, this sense of focus is just as important, if not more, in our personal and family lives. As we enter the season when the overwhelm of events, gatherings, demands and obligations tends to elbow out any opportunity to observe and understand, I hope that the 2025 Gratitude Challenge will help you recenter, even for a moment, the people and passions that bring purpose to your world.