Adolescence is a time of life when you first begin to ponder where you are going and why. Times of transition and change can be an opportunity for creating a new sense of meaning in your life. As you get older, you may wonder why some people live lives full of zest, commitment and meaning while others drift along feeling life is meaningless.
First consider the conditions that are necessary to give meaning "within" life. How would you answer the following two questions?
? How do I want to live?
? What choices do I need to make to have a happy, fulfilling, and meaningful life?
How you answer these two questions indicates whether you will live passionately or withdraw from life and its challenges. After much research and study, Jonathan Haidt describes three conditions needed for feelings of meaning and fulfillment to exist (The Happiness Hypothesis, 2006).
Haidt found that one of the most important conditions necessary for you to flourish is love. It begins in the early stages of life in the form of parental love. Love is necessary so that you will form attachments that help you feel secure and brave enough to explore life during childhood and adolescence.
In addition, everyone needs to belong. A sense of belonging is necessary for healthy self-esteem. As adults, experiencing passionate and compassionate love can lead to "true" love in marriages and relationships. "True" love is defined as compassionate love between two people who are committed to each other with some passion added.
Some of the benefits of healthy relationships are a stronger immune system, a speedy recovery after surgery, and a lower risk of depression and anxiety problems. As a single person, compassionate love is shown to others with similar benefits, being healthier and happier.
The second important condition is having and pursuing goals that allow you to use your strengths to create states of flow (Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi) or engagement (Martin Seligman). This is often referred to as a need for competence or mastery. Pursuing goals allow you to become competent by interacting with or controlling your environment. It is why you get more pleasure from making progress toward a goal rather than achieving it.
Choices you make while you are pursuing your goals can help you experience more meaning in your life when they engage your strengths. For example, Ann realized that she could use her strengths of creativity and love of beauty to take flowers from her garden to a shut-in during the summer. Recently retired, Mike was not using his strengths of fairness and leadership. He joined a committee to create a handbook for new residents at his retirement facility. These choices have helped both of them experience more meaning in their lives because they are engaging their strengths.
It is possible to experience meaning in your "work" or what you do. How you view your work will determine how meaningful it will be to you. If you feel your work is a calling rather than a job or career, you will feel more fulfilled. It might be having a career, volunteering, being a student, or a full-time parent. Whatever you call "work" gives you the opportunity to meet the basic drive of "making things happen" or achieving your goals. If it allows you to use some of your strengths, it will make your life even more meaningful.
The third condition is to know that you are making a contribution to something greater than yourself. This might by a political or faith issue or a cause that is important to you. It is something that allows you to use your strengths as you strive to make the world a better place.
By establishing the following three conditions, life becomes more meaningful:
? Connect with others showing compassion.
? Use your strengths in your "work" and /or personal life.
? Make choices that contribute to something greater than yourself.
Committing to getting the right relationship between yourself and others, yourself and your work or environment, and yourself and something larger than yourself brings a sense of fulfillment and meaning in your life. Happiness will follow. It is a by-product of the choices you are making.
What steps will you take now to establish these conditions to make your life more meaningful?
What do you think is the meaning of real assets? Is it the physical possessions that we have such as money, cars, real estates and etc? The answer is obviously no! We have to change our mindset and realize that the real assets we have in life are our health, our family, our happiness and contentment. Nowadays, many people are so busy trying to make more and more money that they lose sight of these real assets in their lives that really matter. People spend a lot of money attending courses or seminars to learn how to manage their financial assets but when it comes to these more important aspects of their lives, they are often very poorly managed.
It is unfortunate to see that a lot of the seemingly successful people are unable to enjoy the real assets in their life. Even though they live in big houses and drive expensive cars that many others can only dream of, they suffer from poor health with some illnesses that may not even be curable regardless of how much money is spent. Others, in the midst of pursuing their financial success ended up neglecting their family and love ones. Consequently, they have all the luxury in life but find that there is still emptiness in life.
So, for those who are on the move all the time in search of better business opportunities or greater financial success, do take time to think through before sacrificing your health and love ones to attain your goals. To do so, you have to realize three important things. First is to understand that you are in full control of your thoughts, actions and feelings. Therefore, you are able to manage your own happiness and well-bring. Secondly, take note that you may lose interest in life if you focus too much on things that don't really matter. One day, you may just find that life is meaningless? Lastly, you have to learn to let go of past failures. Many people are unable to do so and end up being haunted by their failures. As a result, they suffer pointlessly and are unable to progress in life.
It is crucial to know who you really are because you are responsible for your own life. Examine yourself properly and find out what are the things that can really make you feel fulfilled and happy. No doubt money is very important to survive in today's society. Without money life can be miserable. But it is vital to ask yourself this question. How much are you willing to forgo to have more money?
Here are also some questions for you to ponder over. Will you allow work stress and pressure to prevent you from enjoying your life? It is sad to find that time and again, we become so preoccupied with work that we neglect our own health and we stress ourselves out unnecessarily. Another question to ask is will you keep on doing something that will not result in any considerable improvement on your way of life? Do manage your time well and allocate it to fruitful pursuits.
Think through the above questions to help you find out whether you are living a meaningful life that is worth living.
Both Maurine Patten & Mong Ling are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Mong Ling has sinced written about articles on various topics from self improvement and motivation. Mong Ling would like to help others attain greater success in life through personal development and achieving financial freedom. For more info please visit