“Who do you want to serve?”

This question alone unlocks purpose.

This month I’m starting a course on activism, taught by a friend I met in Essay Club. When she asked for 250 words on activism, I stalled. That’s what I’m here to learn. But then I remembered the question that led me here, and started writing.

Activism is service with a vision. It’s selfless work in the face of a systemic challenge. It comes with no guaranteed outcomes, no sure bets. It’s a chance to make a lifetime of impact that may not come to pass in your lifetime.

These days, with so many multi-hyphenates claiming the term “activist,” it’s harder to think about activism as a service. It has become something we claim for ourselves. For our identities. We see all-or-nothing notions of either dedicating our careers to public service in pre-packaged tracks, or tacking on activism to our lives in leftover spaces reserved for hobbies. These spaces are often what’s left after we’ve ticked the boxes to bring home the bacon, take care of our own, and foster our passions and interests.

The American pursuit of self-actualization has forgotten the role that activism plays in earning a right to it. I, like many my age, had been blinded by this pursuit. Despite my lifelong study of history, I didn’t learn from it. I was too caught up in answering questions like “who do I want to be?” and “what do I want to do?” It took me until 30 to learn to turn those around into “who do I want to serve?” and “what problems do I want to solve?”

This slight shift in inquiry has catalyzed some of the more rewarding experiences of my adult life. By deciding who I’ll work in service of, I’ve made space to learn first, and act second. I’m at the beginning of my journey, but I’ve learned this: When we take the ego out of purpose, we make room to actualize a vision more enduring than our own.