Even the corporate world is starting to get that people are happier, therefore more productive, if you stimulate more than their brains. It requires going deeper than the surface when facing a task or an obstacle in completing a task. Cognitive skills are important but this theory maintains that your emotional state not only enhances your performance but also sustains it without depleting your health. The Harvard Business Review’s article called “The Making of a Corporate Athlete” states that people that have a deeper meaning and purpose sustain a high level of performance. Can’t we say the same in all aspects of our lives? Think about a person who knows their purpose in life, like a motivational speaker who is spreading awareness on something they’re passionate about. You can actually feel their energy and they can usually cause an effect in the people they talk to; aren’t they performing in their life? Aren’t they happy? Now think about someone who is lost in the world and can’t seem to find their purpose. They can be the smartest person in the world but feeling lost makes them unhappy. The constant searching and the focus on being unhappy keeps that person from performing to their fullest capacity in life. I see so many adoptees who struggle with this, always searching, searching, searching. What are they missing out on because they’re looking for their identity? Human nature is that we need to know who we are before we can find our purpose in life. Some adoptees will never be able to find out where they came from so let me offer a way of thinking that might help get past that. If you’re one of those adoptees who will never know, use the power of your brain and thoughts to convince yourself that you’re the first of your bloodline! You are the beginning and maybe your purpose is to start a bloodline with a special purpose: a bloodline who will always know who they are and where they came from or maybe you could create a legacy for your children and their children and so on. Be the first one and create your bloodline in the way you want and there is your purpose. Once you have a purpose, you can start performing in life and even more importantly, be happy. The Harvard article talks about training executives on this performance pyramid that takes into account their mind, body and spirit. We need to train in the same way for our lives and happiness. Be a leader in your own life. Be a performer. You have the power!