Blog Posts by Oprah.com

As told to Leigh Newman

Living on purpose, as I define it, is to become aware that we were all created to serve some specific function in life. Some of these purposes might be lofty, attracting the accolades of the world. Some of these purposes may be down-to-earth, such as raising a child, teaching or engaging in some other activity that may not be as acknowledged by society but is still significant.

The pursuit of your life is to come into that purpose. And the waste of your life is to miss that purpose. The problem, though, for most of us is discovering what our purpose is. Here are a few mistakes we make while looking for it, ones that can distract or misdirect us.

RELATED: 17 Quotes That Will Help You Discover Your Life's Purpose

1. The "But I Love It" Mistake
For a few years, I was involved in music. I was a choir director, and I played the piano. I noticed that when our choir got ready to sing, people got more blessed out of me introducing the song and talking about the song

Photo: ThinkstockBy Lynn Andriani

Accidentally Buying the Wrong Ingredient at the Supermarket

Your shopping cart swerves into the condiments aisle, you grab what you think is hoisin sauce, and then you get home to find you've bought Asian plum sauce. Or you sprint through the meat department and pick up turkey thighs instead of chicken. While you may be able to make do with your alternate (e.g., interchangeable poultry parts), sometimes it won't be such an easy swap. That's where helpful sites like the Cook's Thesaurus and Chowhound come in. The former is a cooking encyclopedia of sorts that covers thousands of ingredients and will tell you, for instance, that you can make hoisin by mixing soy sauce, plum sauce, flour, spices and honey. And Chowhound's massive pool of members can tell you what to do with those turkey thighs--and if they'll work in tikka masala or not.

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Preheating Your Pan at a High Heat

You probably know how long it

Photo: Thinkstock

1. To protect your ticker.

According to a study involving nearly 13,000 high-risk heart patients, people who regularly take annual vacations slash their risk of death from heart disease by as much as 29 percent.

The same study found that people who vacation have a 17 percent lower risk of death from any cause.

3. To be happier-even before you leave home.

Dutch scientists discovered that simply anticipating a trip increases happiness. And a study published in 2009 in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine found that vacations and other leisure activities lead to a more positive outlook and lower levels of depression.

4. To improve the quality of your relationship.

Research by the Rural Women's Health Study revealed a direct correlation between frequency of vacations and odds of marital satisfaction: The more time a

Photo: ThinkstockBy Lynn Andriani

Blueberries: The Indigo-Colored Antioxidant

When: May through October. In many areas, you can harvest them yourself; visit PickYourOwn.org to find a farm and see what's available when.

Why: These berries-one of the few foods that are naturally blue--have sky-high levels of antioxidants, which combat the damage done by inflammation. Anthocyanins, the natural plant compounds that give blueberries their deep color, may have antidiabetic effects as well.

How: Aside from go-tos like pancakes and smoothies, blueberries also add a sweet kick to grilled pork.

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Red Bell Peppers: A Sweet, Crunchy Punch of Vitamin C

When: May through September, although since red peppers are actually mature versions of green ones, you may not see them in markets until later in the season.

Why: While all peppers are very low in calories (about 25 per cup), reds--which taste sweeter and milder--are

Photo: Gregg SegalBy Allison Overholt

Between 1972 and 2010, the number of female collegiate athletes grew 622 percent thanks to college scholarships awarded in the wake of Title IX. The legislation guaranteed women equal access to academic and athletic programs at federally funded schools. Here, three members of the same family--one born too early to benefit from Title IX, one whose life was changed by it, and one who grew up taking it for granted-reflect on the landmark law.

RELATED: The Women on the Front Lines of Global Women's Health

When Patty Meyers (above left) wanted to play volleyball and basketball at St. Francis High School in Wheaton, Illinois, she and a friend had to start the first female teams themselves. At Cal State Fullerton in 1968, Meyers joined the women's basketball team, but the squad struggled to find funding.

"My college basketball team won the national title during the 1969-70 season, the first year they let women play five-on-five, full-court basketball; before then, it

Tidy your house with the help of a few convenient (and fun!) items.

Photo: ThinkstockBy: Amy Shearn

A lot of parenting advice stresses me out (baby flashcards! no flashcards!) so I love when someone smart declares that the thing to do to help our kids is to read more. Reading I can do. Filling the house with books I can handle. An excuse to buy picture books, novels, and magazines? Yes, please. The only thing that would be better would be discovering that kids thrive when their parents drink a lot of coffee and wear yoga pants for days at a time. Mothering win!

RELATED: You Make the World a Better Place

Last year, Lisa Bloom's book Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World came out, and started a nationwide (and Internet-wide) conversation about how we talk to our little girls, and how simply saying different things to them (and encouraging reading and thinking) can help them grow up to be smart women. Boys, presumably, were doing okay. After all, men have it easy in today's world, right? I mean, they never have to wait in line for a public

Photo: ThinkstockBy Caitlin Shetterly

1. "The bills aren't my job."
I'm unfortunately very familiar with this lie. When the recession sunk its claws into our lives, and my husband, Dan, was left unemployed for over nine months before going back to school, we realized that there were some little lies we'd gotten into the habit of telling ourselves that were making it harder for us to bail out. By then we'd had our first child, and the combination of the recession and becoming a mom all in a matter of months had left me overwhelmed. One night, when my son was two weeks old, I said to Dan: "I can't do the bills anymore. They have to be your job." Now, it's true that busy families often divvy up the tasks--"You clean the kitchen while I put the kids to sleep"--and the bills can feel like just another one of those parceled-out chores. Except here's the problem: Dropping that mountain on one person's shoulders, especially during tough times, and thinking that they'll be able to manage it while you