Over the last few weeks I found myself in quite a few impromptu coaching sessions with our amazing Singularity University Global Solutions Program (GSP) participants. As part of the GSP, participants form teams to build companies — focussed on leveraging exponential technologies tackling the biggest problems in the world.
It is an intense and stressful process — and throws even the most battle-hardened entrepreneurs deep into the pit where they have to figure out what is important to them, what truly matters, what’s worth fighting for and where to give…
Coaching folks through this process is a true privilege — as each interaction gives me an opportunity to learn a bit more about myself, test my own assumptions and believes and widens my horizon.
One of the common themes is the question of what one truly wants to do. Am I truly working on a product which I believe in? Is a startup really the thing I want to do for the next five to ten years? Is now the right time or shall I first do something else?
Of course there is no simple one-size-fits-all answer to these questions. But becoming super clear about your values and purpose gets you a long way to finding the answers for yourself.
Ask yourself what you truly value — not the superficial, surface-layer things but the pieces which deep down in you make you tick. The things which, when someone violates them, hurt you more than anything else. And then figure out what your purpose is. What is it that you were meant to do? What are the things you just have to do — the things which give you energy and feed your soul.
Once you have those two pieces (and it will take time and requires space for introspection), all the other pieces fall into place.