I watched a video for one of my classes this week about choosing our own Hero’s Journey. In it were four key elements to finding and then choosing to become our own hero.

1. Live every moment of your life like it matters – because it does.

How we choose to spend every single moment of our lives counts for something. Sometimes we need a break and that’s good. Taking breaks helps us to rejuvenate and rededicate our efforts towards our goal. Even those moments of recreation or relaxation count towards becoming the hero we want to someday be.

2. Live as if you have an important mission – because you do.

Each of us was put on this earth for a reason. Sometimes it’s hard to believe that we’re making a difference but each moment, each hour, each day lived with purpose and definition help mold us into the hero we are destined to become. Each of us has a mission and we should live every moment building towards that goal.

3. See struggles as adventures and setbacks as lessons.

Sometimes we learn things the easy way and sometimes it takes a little (or huge) challenge for us to learn something. A friend of mine used to remind me during the hard times of my life, that I was having trials to help teach me something. She would tell me that the sooner I could figure out what it was I was supposed to learn, the sooner the trial would end. Looking at struggles or trials as learning experiences or adventures changes them into something meaningful instead of dreadful. Lessons learned are so much more valuable than setbacks. It’s a completely different way of thinking and, therefore, a completely different way of life.

4. What matters most isn’t the prize at the end, but how the hero is changed in the process.

Are we allowing ourselves to be changed? Do we keep our minds open and ready to learn new things? Identifying the adventures and the lessons and using them to improve ourselves is as important as the lessons and adventures themselves. If, once we’re on the other side of the adventure, we don’t take the time to inventory the things we’ve learned, we could quite possibly lose them. To lose them means we’ll have to learn them again in order to accomplish our mission. To take inventory and be accountable for the lessons learned helps to keep our life mission-focused and our moments purpose-driven.