Well I'm definitely getting semantic here, hopefully it is to make a good point and not just annoying.
I think the purpose behind that would be to live a happy life for oneself. How one does that would be different for everyone, but I'd see that as the why behind doing something just because you enjoy it.
Said differently, two people with the same purpose can have wildly different ways of achieving it. What's more interesting, and more helpful as things change and one has to adjust, is knowing the why and how my purpose differs from others.
For example, in the curing cancer example if your purpose behind that goal is to save lives or reduce suffering, curing cancer is just the result of balancing what you think is possible and the impact it could have. If you learn that curing cancer is more difficult, you may pivot to a different goal but for the same purpose.
It also says something of the ways in which you may accidentally go wrong. If your goal is to save lives, you may miss the mark on saving lives but almost certainly wouldn't knowingly do something that will harm people in the long wrong. If your goal is to cure cancer to get rich, you may very well accept long term damage to people if it gets you rich now and you cover your ass for later (aka most of the pharmaceutical industry).
I think the purpose behind that would be to live a happy life for oneself. How one does that would be different for everyone, but I'd see that as the why behind doing something just because you enjoy it.
Said differently, two people with the same purpose can have wildly different ways of achieving it. What's more interesting, and more helpful as things change and one has to adjust, is knowing the why and how my purpose differs from others.
For example, in the curing cancer example if your purpose behind that goal is to save lives or reduce suffering, curing cancer is just the result of balancing what you think is possible and the impact it could have. If you learn that curing cancer is more difficult, you may pivot to a different goal but for the same purpose.
It also says something of the ways in which you may accidentally go wrong. If your goal is to save lives, you may miss the mark on saving lives but almost certainly wouldn't knowingly do something that will harm people in the long wrong. If your goal is to cure cancer to get rich, you may very well accept long term damage to people if it gets you rich now and you cover your ass for later (aka most of the pharmaceutical industry).