I have been thinking a lot about the idea of “purpose” and “joy” in the classroom, and unfortunately, the two words are not necessarily synonymous.
Sometimes I write to share my learning, and sometimes to learn. This post falls into the latter category, and I hope it sparks a more robust conversation. These two words and their connection to school and learning are something I have been wrestling with.
Before I get into either of these terms, let’s look up the definition.
Here is the Gemini (AI) definition of “joy”:
Joy is a deeply rooted, intense emotion of happiness, well-being, and delight. Unlike fleeting, circumstance-based happiness, joy is often viewed as a lasting state of inner contentment and peace. It is frequently sparked by success, good fortune, or a deep sense of connection.
So what about the definition of “purpose”?
Purpose generally refers to the underlying reason for which something is created, done, or exists. It encompasses a clear, intended aim or desired result that guides your actions, as well as a strong, personal resolve or determination to achieve that objective.
Now, here is where I want to make a distinction, and I don’t want to say joy is a bad thing. Not at all. In fact, one of the things that I have said about schools is that they should be a joyous place, and might be the most joyous place for some students and adults alike.
But “purpose” is something that drives me.
Personally, I want to be the best dad I could possibly be.
Professionally, the work I do today is driven by a purpose.
It is driven by the pursuit of helping all learners find a pathway to success that is meaningful to them.
Whether it is personal or professional, I am driven by those things, and sometimes they are frustrating and make me feel miserable and disgruntled in the moment. Perhaps sometimes, because I feel I am missing the mark, could do better, or need to restart something from scratch.
But I keep going because it is driven by a purpose. Not joy. Purpose.
And weirdly enough, when I feel I am in a flow state and successful in achieving parts of that purpose, I feel utter joy. But I also feel the opposite as well when I am missing the mark.
During the World Cup, I, with probably one-tenth of the world, became really intrigued by Erling Haaland.
He is a Norwegian football (soccer) player, and he is such an interesting personality, but it was this video that really struck me and possibly inspired this post:
@hyperfocus.pro @Erling Haaland mentality🧠 Success comes from doing the same thing over and over, especially when you don’t want to #sportsmotivation #mentality #mindset #erlinghaaland ♬ original sound – HyperFocus
If you do not see the video, he is on an assault bike, pushing incredibly hard, and he says, “Do I want to do this? No, I don’t. Will I do it? Yeah. Am I doing it? Yeah. Because…why not? It’s good for my body. It’s good for my mind.”
In this video, he talks about eating healthy and the choice he has to make so he can stay in shape, because a lot of people are counting on him at work (being a professional football player).
He seems like an easy-going person, and honestly, quite joyful. But you can see he does things that, in the moment, make him miserable. In fact, he embraces the discomfort.
There are days when I eat healthier than I want to in that moment, grind my teeth, and chew something I hate when I want to have ice cream and pizza. But I want to live as long as possible for my kids. That’s my purpose.
Now, being in education is hard, and I can tell you there were times in my life when I might have seemed more joyful at work, but I also lacked motivation. Teaching was, at one point, a job that paid the bills and nothing else. If that is you right now, honestly, I am fine with that because your “purpose” might be in something solely outside of your work.
When I found purpose in my work, that’s when things changed.
How I found it is for another post, but I will tell you it included many long nights and some unpleasant experiences.
Part of the reason I write this is to reflect not only on my own experiences, but also on the student experience.
I am not talking about kindergarten or early elementary students right now, but as kids get older, is the focus more on joy or purpose? Because if it is about finding joy, you might try to skip some of the hard stuff. If it is about living with purpose, you start to realize that the hard stuff is necessary.
What is one of the things kids have asked in school forever?
Why do I have to learn this?
They aren’t looking for joy; they are looking for a purpose in something bigger than themselves.
And not your purpose, but something that is connected to their lives. This is not an easy question to answer for someone else. Ultimately, you have to figure out your purpose.
As I write this, I feel this is part of my conclusion.
Always feeling joy doesn’t mean I have a purpose.
Always having purpose means I can have joy, but it is not the only emotion I will experience.
With the ups will come the downs, but the downs are necessary to achieve something meaningful.
Purpose is not an endpoint, but a process. It might change over time, but if it vanishes, that is when I get worried.
As I write all of this, I realize why this has bothered me.
My dad worked his butt off at the restaurant, and there were times when he seemed more miserable than I could understand.
As the youngest in my family, my dad decided that, as soon as I graduated from high school, he would sell his restaurant and retire. He did, and about a month later, he took another job as a chef at another establishment. He struggled with it, and until I got older, I never really understood.
The work was really hard, but his purpose was to serve others. He loved it sometimes, hated it others, but when it was gone, he was lost. It took him a while, but as he aged, he found more purpose in his kids, and my relationship with him improved later in life because of it. But I knew he always missed that restaurant. The purpose that drove him. Not always easy, but somehow, rewarding.
Purpose is not always easy, and it is definitely not always joyful. But it most likely matters.
When I see people who knew my dad, even though he passed away over a decade ago, they will say things like, “Your dad made the best Greek ribs I ever had!” They also talk about vivid experiences that they had at the restaurant, which meant a lot to a town of 5000 people.
When you live a life with purpose, it often resonates with others.
The tough stuff matters. The miserable stuff matters. The joy matters.
All of it matters when it is connected to purpose.
Find that, and you will often inspire people to find their purpose as well.
(Here is a video from Instagram where I recently talked about my thinking on this!)
