When talking about the meaning of life, you always have to start by defining your terms. Why? Because people almost always equivocate when you don’t. You can look up the definition of life in the dictionary, for example, and no one will claim that that’s what they meant. In addition to the literal definition of life, other meanings of “the mean...
Read MoreThere is one unifying goal in all of life: the positive outcome. Everyone is looking for that one meaning in life that makes them feel fulfilled: service to others, love, happiness, pleasure, achievement, learning, personal growth, financial success, respect, or appreciation. The truth is that it is all growth-related, as everyone looks forward t...
Read MoreMost simple motivational talks could be summarized as such: “Find what you want; believe you can attain it; and go out there and get it!” Similarly, when you go to the self-help section of a bookstore, you’ll find a whole list of books claiming to provide anything from the belief system to get what you want to step-by-step guidance to attain what...
Read MoreIn my blog post a few weeks ago, “If You Want to Be Happy, Then You Have to Be Happy”, I spoke about how if you wait for things to be better before you’re happy, then you are making yourself miserable now for a future that either will come (and you’ll have been miserable for no reason up until then) or will never come (and you’ll always be miserabl...
Read MoreAfter talking about how desires are a good thing despite some philosophies pointing out that they can sometimes cause you to to feel negative emotions, I thought I’d provide a short overview of how desires evolve over time. Whereas in my previous post I discussed how the endless number of desires you’ll have in your life is not necessarily a signal...
Read More“I was supposed to have a spouse and kids by now.” “One of my classmates from high school is now a CEO.” “I’m so far behind in my retirement savings.” People naturally compare their life progress to others, and they start to wonder what they need to do to “catch up” to others when they fall behind.
Read MoreMistakes People Make in Their Search for Meaning When people are looking for their meaning in life, they will have trouble finding it if they make erroneous assumptions about how life works or what they’re supposed to do with the one that they’ve been given. Unfortunately, such fundamental assumptions are held sometimes without people having thoug...
Read MoreEveryone dreams of getting recognized for what they’ve done or the kind of person they are. Many people throughout history inspire people today for all that they’ve done for humanity. However, there is one depressing reality about many of those people who are revered for their accomplishments: so many of them never achieved even remotely the leve...
Read MoreAt some point, all living things die. Why does it have to be that way? Well, it depends on whether you’re asking that question scientifically or metaphysically. Let's take a look at why lifespans are limited from a scientific perspective and then derive some positive meanings that one could find in that fact from a "meaning of life, the universe...
Read MorePeople recommend that you should always be honest with and true to yourself. When referring to being the person you want to be and doing what you want to do with your life, this is important advice. However, there is a hidden interpretation that many people make from this that "honest" means being "real"--i.e., being realistic. Hence, the idea o...
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