WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE LOST ON PURPOSE?

Have you ever felt lost in life, thinking there is no purpose for you or any reason for you to be alive? With everything happening in the world, there’s no doubt that living is a privilege, and feeling lost can make it difficult to see that.

“Sometimes, you need to get lost in order to find your purpose.”

With this in mind, Aldrich Infantado, an author under 8Letters Bookstore and Publishing, released his new book, Lost on Purpose, which, according to him, “though classified as a self-help book, isn’t your typical self-help book.”

When asked what the book is about, the author states, “It won’t tell you to work harder or pray more, and it doesn’t promise that everything will be fine. It’s a collection of personal essays that explores the beauty of getting lost, both literally and figuratively. I drew inspiration from my real-life experiences with travel, hiking, failure, work, money, and people-pleasing.

“The book asks uncomfortable questions about the paths society tells us to follow. It doesn’t offer a perfect blueprint or map to a happy and successful life. Instead, it reminds readers that it’s okay to fail, lose their way, and disappoint people. And it tells readers that sometimes you need to get lost to truly find yourself.”

The Reason Behind the Book

Just like any other author, writing a book is not always the result of a sudden idea. Some authors plan to write for years before deciding to publish, while others begin writing only after deciding to turn their ideas into a book. As an author with two published books, what made you decide that you needed to write Lost on Purpose?

“It sounds morbid, but the idea of death prompted me to write and complete this book. There’s only one thing for certain in this life: one day we will die. Everything else between birth and death is uncertain.

“So, before my time comes, I want to leave my unica hija, Adrielle, the wisdom I have gained from the battles I have fought and the mountains I have climbed.

“I once attended a book talk in Cebu where the bookstore’s owner said something that stayed with me: the books we write today will outlive us. I believe any of us could leave this world at any time. Through this book, I’m giving my daughter something that will help her get through life’s storms even when I’m no longer around.”

Finding Meaning in Getting Lost

From its title, Lost on Purpose, it becomes clear that the book aims to help people who struggle with feeling lost in life. How did you come up with the title?

“The title was deliberate and carefully chosen. When people say they feel lost, they often think they are trapped in a hopeless, endless maze with no way out. But getting lost, both in life and in the mountains, helped forge me into the person I am today.

“It taught me resilience, fortitude, and adaptability. More importantly, it made me realize that we don’t have to follow society’s timeline or prescribed path to find happiness and success.

“It also taught me that we need to blaze our own trails in life. But you can’t create your own trail without leaving the familiar path, even if that means getting lost for a while. That, to me, is what it means to be Lost on Purpose.”

The Challenge of Being Vulnerable

Being lost on purpose is like deliberately stepping away from the familiar, which also requires you to dig into your own experiences, relate them to others, and even relive them. How did you face those challenges while writing the book?

“I’m a very private person. I don’t feel comfortable putting myself in the public eye or sharing intimate details about my life. But in Lost on Purpose, I had to write about personal struggles and uncomfortable moments that I wouldn’t usually share with anyone.

“Being that vulnerable was challenging, but it was necessary. I couldn’t write honestly about getting lost while hiding every mistake and wrong turn I had taken.

“I wanted readers to see that no path is completely linear and to understand that life is messy, complicated, and perfectly imperfect. Life isn’t always sunshine and butterflies, and it doesn’t have to be.”

Ten Years in the Making

As mentioned earlier, you already have two published books, Seven Polaroids From Estela and 101 Letters to Juliet. Considering the experiences you shared and included in your new book, Lost on Purpose, how long was the writing process?

“People thought it took me months to write Lost on Purpose. The truth is, it took me ten years to complete this book.

“I have been writing on my travel blog for a decade, using it as a personal diary where I recorded my journeys, struggles, realizations, and lessons from my adventures and misadventures. Today, that blog has hundreds of stories and millions of words.

“It would be difficult for my daughter or any reader to go through all those pages and pictures and piece together the philosophy behind them. So I used that whole decade of writing, gathered the stories and lessons that mattered most, and shaped them into one book.”

From a Personal Gift to a Book for Others

Despite those challenges, you were still able to finish the book. What motivated you to continue writing it?

“At first, I didn’t want to share this book with the rest of the world. I just wanted to share it with my daughter. But then I realized that this book could help a lot of people.

“Besides being an author, I also have a personal travel blog. And it’s not like the typical travel blog that shares budget travel tips or travel hacks. It’s more of an outlet for me to share my realizations and reflections on life, travel, and the mountains.

“And through my blog, I have helped people who were battling inner demons. Over the years, many have reached out and thanked me for making them feel better. And I thought maybe this book could also help anyone who feels lost in life and needs to know they are not alone.”

Defining Success in Being Lost

Following the successful launch of Lost on Purpose at the recent Manila International Book Fair 2026, what do you hope your readers will take away from the book?

“We grew up with a very specific picture of success. There’s a timeline and a checklist of things we are expected to have or achieve before we can call ourselves successful. Yet I have seen people who had everything and still felt empty.

“I just want to give people a different perspective. Maybe their idea of success isn’t theirs. Perhaps it’s a concept borrowed from someone else.

“To me, success is subjective. The key to a happy life is developing your own definition of success instead of spending your whole life chasing somebody else’s.”