Joe makes a stark distinction between mind and body when it comes to purpose. The mind, with all its thinking and analyzing, is fundamentally incapable of finding purpose.
“You think that your mind is going to find your purpose? No. Trust your body for a minute.”
Why the Mind Fails
The mind operates through:
- Analysis and questioning
- Future-orientation (purpose as something to achieve)
- Doubt and second-guessing
- Separation from direct experience Purpose, however, lives in the present moment and is accessed through the body, not through mental activity. The mind can only think about purpose—it cannot be purpose.
The Alternative
When Joe asks the client to ask her question “from your body” rather than her mind, something shifts. The body has a different kind of knowing—immediate, present, not filtered through analysis.
“Trust your body for a minute.” This isn’t anti-intellectual. It’s recognizing that certain things cannot be figured out—they can only be lived.
The Pattern
The client keeps defaulting to mind:
- “I feel like I know my purpose and I’m trying to get to it in my head.”
Joe’s response is direct:
- “Yeah. That’s your way of avoiding it.” The mental approach to purpose is the avoidance of purpose.
Related Concepts
- Purpose is lived in the present moment
- Searching for purpose avoids it
- Doubt is leaving your heart
- Doubt protects you from emotions you don’t want to feel
- Wanting is aliveness