Purpose Over Performance

For much of my life, I measured my worth by how well I performed. I was praised for obedience, for getting it right, for not asking too many questions. Later, performance looked like achievement: finishing degrees, building a business, raising a family, holding it all together.

But performance can only take you so far. It will keep you busy. It might even make you look successful. But deep down, it cannot anchor you. Purpose can.

Learning to choose purpose over performance changed everything for me. Purpose is not about proving yourself. It is about aligning with what matters most. It is about making decisions that match your values, even when no one is watching. It is about letting your life reflect what you believe, not just what you can accomplish.

Purpose allows room for rest. It welcomes softness. It teaches you that your life is not a checklist but a canvas. And when you begin to live this way, you find a freedom that performance alone cannot give.

If you find yourself exhausted from all the striving, I invite you to pause. Ask yourself not, “How much did I accomplish?” but, “Did I truly live?” The answer to that question will carry more peace than any list of accomplishments ever could.

Because at the end of the day, performance fades. Purpose endures.

-Jasmine