Someone on Quora asked me to play the three-word game with the meaning of life, so here it is—the meaning of life in as few words as possible: In one word: Growth. In three words: Growth through experience. In the minimum number required to explain all eight of the components I identified:
Read MoreWhile I hope that you are living a happy, fulfilling, meaningful life, it is possible that you are not. In either case, an effective way to ensure that you can get or stay on the right path is by looking at the most common reasons why people might not feel a sense of meaning and purpose in life. Hopefully, learning from others struggles can make...
Read MoreSo, let me get my own personal experience out of the way first: I graduated from college a semester early because I took 18–19 credits for 7 semesters. So, without a job lined up (I wasn’t expecting to graduate until May but crossed my credit requirements in December), I spent months applying for jobs and not really doing much else. Out of the bl...
Read MoreMany people will ponder death and immediately wonder why we're born at all if we just are going to die. The truth is, that's a tempting but incorrect way to look at life: we are born to live, not to die. I get it—the idea that we're just going to die and it's all pointless seems profound when you first think it. It seems like you've just seen that...
Read MoreA lot of people wonder why purpose doesn't culminate or present a "grand reveal" at the end of life. Why, they might ask, does the end of life seem anti-climactic and devoid of meaning? Well, the answer is—other than the fact that life doesn't work like a movie—pretty straightforward. The meaning of life is to grow, and so when your life is ending,...
Read More"What if everyone is right?" As a gullible person with ASD, I often listened to whatever I was told as a child. I've never done drugs or smoked. I followed all the rules. I got good grades. I adopted the beliefs and advice of adults around me. As a result, arguments over politics, religion, philosophy, and human behavior fascinated me because I cou...
Read MoreWelcome to The Meaning of Life. If you're here, you are probably wondering what the meaning of life is and how I came to understand it. Well, after over 20 years of studying psychology and human behavior, I asked myself whether I could summarize it all into a few principles that, if followed, could lead anyone to have a sense of purpose in their li...
Read MoreWith their pithy-yet-powerful points, Admiral William H. McRaven's advice to "make your bed" and Dr. Jordan B. Peterson's recommendation to "clean your room" are resonating with millions of people. Why is that? Well, this return to simple, clear goals that an individual can accomplish to instill a sense of purpose is filling a major hole in the hea...
Read MoreIt’s that time of year again: time to think about your New Year’s resolutions. Lose weight. Change jobs. Find your soulmate. Whatever your resolution is, you have it for one reason: you think that you will be happier having attained that goal. So why do most people give up on those resolutions by February or March at the latest? Other commitments,...
Read MoreResearch Identifies the Main Drivers of Humans’ Sense of Purpose New Book from Nathanael Garrett Novosel Dispels Common Myths about How People Find Meaning and Fulfillment January 1, 2020 Annapolis, MD – For years, researchers have debated the main drivers of humans finding meaning and purpose in their existence. The most recent trend in psychology...
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