"Find out who you are and do it on purpose." Dolly Parton
Purpose, It's what makes us human.
We've just got a couple of new chickens. It's quite tough for them at the moment, because the older chickens are pecking at them whenever there's food around. There's always food around. None of the chickens have to fight for survival. But it's just their instinct.
But humans don't have to live on instinct. We live through myths and stories that we tell each other.
We hear a lot about marketing being all about "telling your story". But sometimes it's hard to get beyond "I built this because I had a problem and this solves the problem for me".
Your story needs to clearly tell the purpose. And sometimes it's hard to find that.
Dig deep. Think hard. Use fewer words, Use more words. Draw pictures. Talk to your partner, your friends, strangers, Eli. Talk on Twitter, on Reddit. Talk out loud to the mirror. When you've got a real purpose, you'll see it. You'll see it in your face. You'll see your face light up. There's a reason we use a light bulb emoji 💡.
If this is an indie project you might be making small bets. But if you're betting without purpose, you're throwing your money away. If you're going all in, you'd better be ready to lose it all.
But I wonder if gambling is the wrong metaphor. Maybe we should be gardening. You've got a new plot of land. It's overgrown. It's unexplored. What are you going to do with it?
You need to eat, Start foraging. Look for the nuts and fruits and mushrooms. You need some staples that can last all year. So you plant some potatoes and onions. Maybe some salads. They grow quickly, and give a good return. You can get to self sufficiency within a season. Sure, it's quicker in summer, but hopefully you can survive the winter. You've made a garden, and it is good.
Sometimes I wish that's all we needed. But in reality we need more. So we need to start bartering and selling our produce at the market. Our purpose is more than just self sufficiency, because in the real world of SaaS, we need to find customers. You need to grow enough for others too. And that's an act of generosity.
Eventually you'll find yourself growing wheat to make bread, raising sheep for cheese. Bringing in people to help you with the planting and harvests.
You don't have to grow too much. You can stay small on purpose. But make sure it is on purpose.
If you'd like to chat about your purpose, add a comment below, or we can natter over a coffee or a beer.Â