The sip of dessert wine tasted amazing especially in contrast to the merlot I had just tried.  The moscato blend was welcomed as it washed away the “cigar and wood notes” of the merlot that the description promised.  After the tasting, we decided that we would buy a glass and sit on the patio.

I didn’t hesitate as I ordered the moscato blend and made my way outside.  Halfway through the glass I looked at it as if it were a traitor. It was nauseatingly sweet.  The first few sips were enjoyable, but with each sip the sweetness became more and more overwhelming.  How could something I had enjoyed so much during the tasting turn out to be so disappointing? Well, I think it is The Taste Test Illusion.

It reminded me of the Pepsi Paradox.  When Pepsi and Coke went head to head in a taste test, most chose Pepsi even though more people reported liking Coke better.  The people weren’t lying when they reported liking Coke more, but...

I don’t like running. I don’t find it as enjoyable as some do. It is drudgery. It’s boring. It is monotonous.  It seems to have no purpose. You run and end up right back where you started. Worse than running is running on a treadmill — talk about a rat on a wheel! The only reason I run is because of the fitness results it produces. But, that all changed this month. I ran (well jogged really and some would probably describe it as plodding) the first 5K I have ever enjoyed. I had a blast! Here is why this run was different.

I ran with purpose

I wasn’t running this weekend to achieve a goal or to get a good workout. I was running to support the son of a friend of ours who has cancer and is being treated at St. Jude in Memphis. The race this weekend was to support all of the great work that St. Jude does for children as well as community support for our friends. Having this purpose completely changed my perspective on running. It was no longer...

- Running had no purpose to me, until now.

I don’t think there is a job that exists that doesn’t have parts of it that people loath. In the case of physical therapists, it is documentation. I have never met anyone who said, “I really like that aspect of the job.” Yet, somehow there are therapists who find fulfillment in spite of this awful task. In the previous post, we talked about how having a purpose can help you get through the inevitable low spots in your career. Having a great purpose can also help you see through the mundane aspects of your job.

Larger Sense of Meaning

We tend to seek enjoyment and excitement at our work, but maybe we should instead be seeking purpose. In his book, Great at Work, Morten Hansen describes his research on passion, purpose and work performance. He defines passion as “the feeling of excitement about your work” and purpose as “a sense that you are contributing to others and that your...