“Why do alarm clocks exist? Alarms have a purpose: to get you out of bed and move your life forward daily. Like the alarm clock, you have a purpose, too,” read an email from Senior Associate Dean of Students Juli Dunn. This email was in promotion of the Purpose Workshop, which occurred on Feb. 15 in Reid with facilitators from the Blue Zones Project.

Rebecca Thorpe, Engagement Lead at the Blue Zones Project and a yoga teacher at Whitman, led the workshop. The workshop lasted for almost two hours. 

“I think this work is important for lots of many reasons, but specifically for Whitman College students and young people to find their gifts early and own their gifts. It’s really important to capitalize [on] and celebrate the positive things about themselves and move through life with a positive outlook,” Thorpe said.

Thorpe believes it is important for people to participate in this kind of workshop because we live in such a busy, stressed-out world, and people need the time to take stock in themselves and think about their gifts and celebrate who they are. She thinks it is really important for people to pause and learn.

“Do not sweat the small stuff, and as quickly as things appear, they change just as quickly. Know that you never have to be stuck,” Thorpe said. “I love teaching this class, and it’s my purpose; I hope to continue to do it for a long time.”

First-year Jonathan Becker took part in the Purpose Workshop and also did the Strength Workshop last semester.

“I think it was really great; the facilitator for the workshop was funny and engaging. I think I am a little bit closer to figuring out what I want to do with my life,” Becker said. “I just think that there are good opportunities to build your leadership potential and find what you value and who you are.”

Becker’s takeaway from the event was that in life we all find challenges, but if we find a purpose and we have a mission, we can overcome anything. 

First-year Anthony Maniko also took part in the workshop. Maniko had some important takeaways from the event.

“To have purpose, some of the first steps we need to [take are] coming up with a three minute journal, which includes taking or exploring one’s chances,” Maniko said. 

Maniko also learned about the driving force of finding purpose in life leading to the discovery of one’s passion and purpose. For him, his passion and purpose were related to gifts, passions and values. Maniko also appreciated the purpose worksheet that was distributed to the participants to help them figure out the top five things that they are good at. 

The next Strengths Finder Workshop will take place on April 5 from 5 to 7 p.m. If you are interested in attending, RSVP to the workshop ahead of time.