Living for a Good Purpose

“No pleasure philosophy, no sensuality, no place nor power, no material success can for a moment give such inner satisfaction as the sense of living for good purposes, for maintenance of integrity, for the preservation of self-approval.”

Minot Simons


I write this relaxing in the beautiful Grand Hyatt in Roppongi, Tokyo. Last night in a conversation with a Japanese friend she was lamenting what she described as a Japanese trait of determining ones identity based on the approval of others. After some thought, I shared that I believe this tendency is not exclusively Japanese.

My leadership seminars stress the central role of purpose in our lives and how an awareness of purpose and an ability to articulate it to others increases our effectiveness. I’m reminded by the late Reverend Simons that it is directly related to our sense of satisfaction with our lives.

With love and respect,

Robert