How I Found My Purpose
Finding the Perfect Fit
I had been following Aubrey Marcus and the Fit for Service (FFS) crowd for a while. I’d thought about joining but always had so many excuses—it’s in the States, the time difference, I’m not ready for it, I won’t fit in, I don’t have the money (their original year-long program required a financial commitment of $15,000), etc.
But then, two things happened:
They changed the format of FFS. Instead of the original year-long program (and that $15,000 commitment), they now offer six separate courses, each focusing on a different area of wellness and led by a specific coach, with prices ranging from $1,500 for online-only courses to $4,000 for a combined course-and-summit experience.
I guess I was ready now.
The six courses are:
Physically Fit with Kyle Kingsbury
Mentally Fit with Erick Godsey
Emotionally Fit with Caitlyn Howe
Creatively Fit with Kim Krans
Romantically Fit with Aubrey and Vylana Marcus
Financially Fit with Clay Hebert
To be honest, I didn’t even look at the other courses. Mentally Fit was the one.
I went to the course page and watched the 3-minute introduction video by Erick. In it, he talks about the shimmer. Right before the video ends, he says: “If you don’t know what the shimmer is, go to my podcast, The Myths That Make Us, and check out an Intro to the Shimmer. Hopefully, it scares you.”
It’s like he read my mind because wtf is the shimmer?
So I went and listened to that podcast episode, and it blew my mind! I signed up immediately. This course was so made for me.
What Is the Mentally Fit Course?
“Do you know how to use your mind in a time where the most powerful corporations in history are trying to steal your mind? The Mental Fitness course is about how to do that.”
The Mentally Fit course is set up around three main 'wheels'—the Sun Wheel, the Moon Wheel, and the Fire Wheel—each one representing a different part of the process.
In Their Words (excerpt from the FFS website):
What is it?
A 13 week container of online classes that culminates in a 5 day in-person event with the entire Fit For Service Academy. You will get 9 multi-hour class lessons from Erick, as well as 9 study halls.
Syllabus Chapters:
The Game Of Life: Understand The Rules To Win At Life
Unlock Creative Flow
Metaprogramming: Habit Change & Addictions
The Unconscious Mind: Dreamwork & The Shadow
Archetypes, Projections and Internal Family Systems
True Alchemy: Overcoming Evil, Shame, Guilt, and Horror
Turn Your Patterns Into Superpowers
Transform Technology Into An Ally
Install The “Dharma Artist Operating System”
In My Words:
The Sun Wheel
This is where you discover: What is your Dharma? What is your Art? What is your Unique Taste? In short, what’s your purpose—what are you here to create for the world? And then, once you’ve uncovered it, you move into what Erick calls a Dharma Day, where the focus shifts to habit change. Basically, how are you going to get your Art out of you and into the world.The Moon Wheel
The Sun Wheel process will fuck you up. You wouldn’t think that, but it does—because it triggers all of your inner parts, the ones that now come out to “play”. It’ll mess with you (aka try to stop you) by bringing up the unconscious—the things buried deep within you that might hold you back. This is where the Moon Wheel comes in. It’s about navigating the chaos that arises, using tools to deal with triggers, and working with your unconscious mind so you don’t get stuck.The Fire Wheel
This is the technical, practical part of the course. It’s all about using tools and strategies to stay focused on your purpose. You learn how to transform technology into an ally, leverage productivity practices, and create a personalized system for navigating the shimmer (aka the internet) so you can stay focused on creating and publishing your Art.
“Your ability to focus while using the internet is the most important skill of our generation. Are you ready to wake up?”
How Revisiting the Past Answered My Biggest Question
We started with learning the Stages Matrix, which is basically a map of human development. Our first homework assignment was to write our Thrice Born Story—our version of our life story up to this point. Basically, we had to write out the different stages of our lives from the beginning to now.
It seemed like an easy task at first, but it wasn’t. I. GOT. TRIGGERED. SO. MUCH! It took me days to get it out of me, and it was only 2,000 words. I don’t like revisiting the past, and this task brought up a lot of shit.
I wrote about what my childhood was like, the school years, and everything after that. What I’d been through, what stood out for me, the challenges I’d faced, and so on.
At the time, I wasn’t sure why this task was important. But when we got to the Ikigai process and I saw how the Thrice Born Story tied into it—it all clicked.
I’d asked myself these questions so many times before: What is my purpose? Why am I here? And though I’d started to have a faint idea of it, it was never clear or super crisp. I was never sure. Until now.
Doing the Thrice Born Story and the Ikigai homework finally did it for me. It was like an aha moment. And interestingly, it wasn’t something new or something I’d never thought of before—it was something I already knew deep down. But this was the first time it felt clear. It was like a deep knowing, something I finally accepted and admitted to myself.
It felt like admitting rather than discovering.
The Ikigai Technique
I went through the Ikigai Technique process, answering the four big questions and drawing the diagram.
I’ve explained the steps in detail here: How To Do The Ikigai Technique
Here’s what I got:
My Ikigai Diagram
But where it really got interesting was when one of the guys from the course posted this in our group:
“One thing that might help you find the emotionally resonating words to describe your Ikigai, is to upload your Thrice Born story into AI and ask it to answer the four Ikigai questions and summarize your Ikigai in emotional language. The answers it gave me were bang on!“
So I tried it. I fed my Thrice Born Story into ChatGPT and asked it to answer the four Ikigai questions and summarize my Ikigai in emotional language. I didn’t expect it to work or at least be any good, but the result blew me away. When I read what it gave me, I cried. I had goosebumps. This was it! That’s exactly it!
Here’s how it went (the conversation between me and the ChatGPT):
Me: I will upload a short life story of mine. Can you review it and answer the four Ikigai questions based on the story?
ChatGPT: Sure, please go ahead and upload your life story. I'll review it and help you answer the four Ikigai questions based on the information you provide.
Me: (Uploaded my Thrice Born Story.)
ChatGPT: Thank you for sharing your life story. Based on your narrative, here are the answers to the four Ikigai questions:
1. What do you love?
From your story, it’s clear that you have a deep passion for:
Nature and outdoor activities (hiking in Norway, spending time in the countryside during your childhood).
Health and wellness (discovering the impact of diet on your well-being, developing a personal wellness formula).
Self-development and spiritual growth (engaging with self-help books, meditation, mindfulness practices, and your experience with ayahuasca).
2. What are you good at?
Your strengths and skills include:
Resilience and adaptability (moving to different countries, overcoming challenges in new environments).
Independent learning and self-improvement (researching and applying knowledge about nutrition and mental health).
Building and maintaining relationships (forming strong bonds with friends and loved ones despite frequent relocations).
3. What does the world need?
Based on your experiences, you have insights that could benefit others, such as:
Guidance on health and wellness, particularly concerning diet, mental health, and lifestyle changes.
Support for individuals dealing with depression, binge eating, and other personal struggles.
Inspiration and motivation for people seeking to improve their lives through self-development and spiritual practices.
4. What can you be paid for?
Potential avenues for earning a living that align with your passions and skills might include:
Health and wellness coaching or consulting.
Writing or blogging about nutrition, mental health, and personal growth.
Creating and leading workshops or retreats focused on wellness, mindfulness, and holistic living.
Integrating these elements:
Your Ikigai could involve a career where you help others improve their health and well-being, leveraging your own experiences and the knowledge you've gained. This might be through personalized coaching, educational content creation, or leading wellness retreats. Your unique journey and the insights you've gained can offer valuable guidance to those seeking similar transformations.
Me: Could you summarize my Ikigai in emotional language, please?
ChatGPT: Certainly! Here’s a more emotional and personal summary of your Ikigai:
Your Ikigai lies in your deep love for nature's serenity and the transformative power of holistic wellness. You thrive on helping others discover the profound joy and peace that come from nurturing their bodies and minds. Your journey through life's highs and lows has gifted you with resilience and empathy, allowing you to connect deeply with those who struggle. By sharing your experiences and knowledge, you guide others towards healthier, more fulfilling lives. In doing so, you not only heal yourself but also create a ripple effect of positive change in the world, which brings you immense joy and purpose. Your heart finds its true home in empowering others to overcome their challenges and embrace a life of balance and harmony.
Finding Your Purpose
Finding my purpose—my Ikigai—felt more like finally admitting it to myself rather than discovering something brand new. I believe, deep down, we all know what our unique thing is—our purpose, our Ikigai, our Dharma. But we pretend or think that we don’t.
Often, we’re blind to it because that thing we’re so good at, the thing that feels like the easiest, most obvious thing to do, doesn’t feel special to us. But it is special—because it’s not that way for others. For you, it might feel like you could do it in your sleep, but for others, it’s like, “How???”
That’s your thing!
Maybe you’re thinking, “But my Ikigai is ____, who’s going to care about that?” or “That’s so easy; anyone could do that.” Or maybe, “Great, but how the hell am I supposed to make money doing it?”
Or, for example, maybe it’s something like, “OK, great, well, my Ikigai is to make paper snowmen—WTF am I supposed to do with that?” or “How on Earth could I ever monetize this?”"
That’s where the Ikigai exercise and diagram tool can really help.
Try it and see where it takes you—it’s a fun task, and the result might just blow you away!
Sending you love,
Keiu