The Generative Drive - how to find and follow your purpose

*Disclaimer: This is a longer email than usual. I’m not a philosopher. This is what Andrew discussed with his guest on a podcast. I made it accessible and more practical in the real world.

The generative drive is a drive that fuels curiosity, amazement, and the desire to engage with the world in a meaningful way. It's not just about personal gratification, but also about thinking beyond ourselves, fostering altruism and industriousness. It’s what we call having a purpose.

It’s the biggest pillar of mental health.

It’s like when you have a project, event, exam, or holiday, and you’re in pursuit. You wake up and you’re always thinking of one thing. Whether it’s a work problem, a passion, or a book you can’t wait to finish. Life feels like a flow state. You are immersed and in sync with yourself.

You create, contribute, and improve our surroundings. You aren’t bothered by small, irritating things. You don’t indulge in aggression and short-term pleasure.

Imagine having that feeling of flow on a day-to-day basis.

Dopamine is not about the pursuit of happiness, it is about the happiness of pursuit. -Dr. Robert Sapolsky.

The generative drive isn’t the purpose. It’s living in alignment with your goals and values.

When you act like your ideal self, you become pure. You do what’s best for you and others. Even if a partner cheats, you lose a job or fail at something. It’s all one drop in your grander pursuit.

So you don’t feel any envy. You have 0 aggression. You have peace of mind and you follow your purpose.

Would they burst out on someone? Would they binge? Would they exercise? Would they let go of that unhealthy relationship? Would they give to charity? Would they hug their parents? Would they fill out the application? Would they talk to that person?

For some it’s yes, for some, it’s no. You need to aim for your ideal character or purpose. Not anybody else’s.

So, here’s a part that isn’t Huberman. This is my advice after trying to take this knowledge and use it in the real world. This is a game of thought redirection.

Even if you have a crystal clear idea of how you want your life, it’s not enough. Sooner or later, things will happen. And you make a tiny change in habits. Then you might find yourself in a bad marriage, gain weight, or enter into a mess..

It’s one small thing that slowly starts to bite. So, you need to have incredible awareness to tune yourself to the ideal version of you.

You need it. Especially when you’re surrounded by bad people, crazy news stories, bad habits, and social media. You forget to think. I swear.

There needs to be a rope that should pull you back and remind you of your purpose and ideal behavior. It’s the third voice in your head when you’re lying in bed at night thinking. Or when you’re crying. Or when you see someone crying.

You need to think, what would the ideal, generative you who is following their purpose do?

Every time you act like they do, you will feel pure glee.

You become generative.

So. Let’s take action.

• Imagine your ideal way of being (the habits, the friends, the job, the personality)

• Ask “What would ideal your name do?”

• Even when the worst things happen, or in the tiny decisions in your day like about what to eat, take a look at your ideal self.

And because the ‘ideal’ person is just an extended version of you, your brain will find it easy to change behavior. And you’ll slowly reach your idealized self and purpose.

So :)

What would the generative you do?