developing purpose

the most meaningful purpose is generally some sort of contribution to others

in the book Grit the author shows how people start their careers by developing interests in various things, and later develop purpose by seeing how their career affects other

there's a line of thinking in there that a lot of our careers can feel a lot more meaningful when we think about how they affect others. i remember an anecdote in Vagabonding about a local somewhere selling trinkets on a beach. he was happy to sell trinkets bc they helped him support his family.

as a PM at Braze, I can have a lot of impact at people. I can make marketers' lives easier and smoother by helping ship the right features. i can help everyone around me enjoy their jobs. i can make our designers and engineers and product analytics and UX researchers feel empowered and make sure they're not stressed by deadlines. i can joke around and help ppl enjoy meetings. a lot of my activities feel really purposeful in that lens.