I have been struggling with this question since I returned from South Korea:

Do you problem-solve, or do you purpose-find?

The first person I asked after coming back was my favorite professor. His initial reaction was confusion, but when I rephrased my question—"Which one do you prefer: problem-solving or purpose-finding?"—he thought for a moment and said, "Both... it depends on what you mean by problem-solving."

What Exactly Are Problem-Solving and Purpose-Finding?

Problem-solving means tackling issues as they come. The world is full of never-ending problems that seem to demand our time, energy, and effort. You feel like you must fix everything, believing that if you don’t step up, no one else will.

Meanwhile, purpose-finding is about identifying what truly matters to you and blocking out distractions that don’t align with your deeper mission. It’s about choosing your battles intentionally rather than being pulled into every crisis that presents itself.

The Harsh Truths of Problem-Solving:

🔹 You’ll never solve everything.
The world is full of issues—political, social, personal. If you try to solve them all, you’ll stay stuck in a cycle of endless firefighting, chasing one problem after another without a clear direction.

🔹 You will be disappointed.
Reality often fails to meet expectations. No matter how hard you work, things won’t always turn out as planned. When you dedicate yourself to fixing problems, you set yourself up for disappointment after disappointment.

🔹 You can’t please everyone.
Even if you try your best, you will always run into conflicting expectations. Helping one person might upset another. You cannot be everything to everyone, and trying to will drain you mentally and physically.

🔹 You risk losing yourself.
Saying ‘yes’ to everything leaves you no time for yourself. You become so busy solving other people’s problems that you forget about your own needs, dreams, and well-being.

The Case for Purpose-Finding:

After years of being a chronic problem-solver, I realized that purpose-finding is the key to long-term happiness. My professor advised me to start finding my purpose sooner rather than later, because:

✔ Purpose-finding energizes you. Unlike problem-solving, which can be exhausting, working towards your true purpose makes you feel motivated and alive.

✔ Purpose keeps you focused. Instead of being distracted by every issue, you learn to say ‘no’ to things that don’t align with your mission.

✔ You become an initiator, not just a fixer. When you shift to purpose-finding, you stop reacting to problems and start creating solutions that align with your values and vision.

The Challenge: Transitioning to Purpose-Finding

For me, the real challenge was learning to say no—to let go of the urge to fix everything and everyone. It’s not easy, but once you start purpose-finding, you begin to see the bigger picture.

👉 You move from reacting to life’s problems → to actively shaping your own path.
👉 You stop letting problems control your time → and start owning your time with intention.
👉 You feel less drained and more fulfilled.

I am still in this process, but one thing is clear: When you align yourself with your purpose, your impact grows effortlessly. You become a leader, an initiator, a creator.

And that is where true influence begins.