To live your life in the most meaningful, flourishing way possible, you have to have freedom. In a modern, organized society, there is always an authority of some sort, almost always the government, that is meant to balance the freedoms and liberties of the individual with the safety and well-being of the group. The main means through which socie...
Read MoreIt is, generally speaking, a great time to be alive. There is less hunger and poverty around the world than in any other time in human history. Yes, it will continue to get better thanks to people who care enough to dedicate their time and effort to helping people and solving real-world problems. But there is also a rise in “manufactured problem...
Read MoreAn important part of feeling meaning and fulfillment in life is being proud of your actions. Your actions are how most people judge you, and those actions are judged based on both what the people see and how they perceive or interpret those actions. You also judge yourself based on your thoughts, beliefs, desires, ethics, and actions, but you hav...
Read MoreYou might not have chosen to be born, but you're surprisingly better off acting as if you had. You know the scenario: a parent and child get into an argument. There's usually some sort of pressure on the child to behave in some way or meet some set of expectations that results in the now-cliché response, "I didn't choose to be born!" What is caus...
Read MoreCognitive dissonance occurs when there is a conflict between a belief you hold and a behavior, new information, or a conflicting belief. The "dissonance" in this case causes discomfort, necessitating a change in the person's behavior or beliefs to alleviate it. The most famous example in history is the Aesop fable of Sour Grapes. In the fable, a...
Read MoreWhen people ask about their purpose, they often want a "greater" meaning or "higher" purpose in life. But what do they mean by this? Greater/Higher than what? Does this mean a divine meaning? And, if this exists, what is it for you, and is it the same for everyone? Well, while this sounds like an impossible question, it's actually fairly simpl...
Read MoreI've been analyzing the search queries that people are using to search for answers around meaning. Here are a sample list of some of the top ones that get them to stumble upon this blog: The list goes on. First of all, it's interesting that I seem to be quickly becoming the go-to site for people who haven't found any answers elsewhere and are loo...
Read MoreWhen people talk about the meaning of life, many look back to the origin of life for insight. Scientists and theologians both assess the origins of the universe, life, and everything in it to see what that knowledge can do for our lives today. Is it possible to definitively know the origins of life and the universe? Even if we could, would that...
Read MoreEveryone asks about whether money can buy happiness, and research says that happiness increases with income up to a certain point (~$75,000/year is where monetary increases no longer reduce stress; ~$200,000/year is where there's no further impact on emotional state). In a related question, people might ask whether money can buy meaning in life....
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