Dr. Victor Frankel was an Austrian psychiatrist who founded logotherapy, a school of psychotherapy that describes a search for a life's meaning as the central human motivational force. In his most prominent book (Mans Search for Meaning) Frankel quotes that “when we lose our purpose and meaning it can become the doorway to death,” therefore, we must always have a purpose and meaning as we go throughout life. The question is, how do we attain this purpose and meaning, and how do we keep it going? Finding one’s purpose and meaning can be quite simple, or extremely difficult depending on what stage of life we are in. There are three stages of life that exist, the beginning, the middle, and the end or aging stage. As we grow, our purpose and meaning grows with us; or changes as we transition through our life. We become motivated by what inspires us. We attain a life’s work and develop hobbies. We engage ourselves in great dreams of becoming the best we can be, and doing our best for others and society. We become a pillar of the empire we created. However, as we grow older, we tend to lose our steam, our enthusiasm. The shiny varnish of our life starts to wear off and we become dull that life has no more to offer. Many times we find our self struggling to find the right path to regain the excitement we once had. The point is that no matter what stage of life we are in, we can always find a new meaning and purpose to regain that excitement. Here are a few suggestions.
Sure, this can be scary, but don’t let it stop you, especially when your unfamiliar with how to accomplish it and make it real. Take myself for example, I love Photography, and I always wanted to own one of those fancy cameras with all of the lenses, but didn’t know how to operate one. Well I was determined to learn, so I went to the library and got as many books I could carry on SLR Photography and spent many days in the mornings reading them. Before long I was out shooting excellent pictures and manipulating that camera like a pro. Was it difficult in the beginning, sure, but it was worth the time. Whatever your interests are, go out and make it happen, otherwise, you could be cheating yourself.
Find something you like to do and engage yourself in it. Is it Family and Grandchildren, engage yourself in it. Is it Business or Marketing, engage yourself in it. Maybe you like to work on automobiles and would like to restore an antique car. Some people like to help others by offering their expertise in what they do best. Never forget, you are the expert of your life’s work weather it’s accounting, computers, cooking, teaching, and more. The possibilities are endless. Start doing what you enjoy.
“You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand.”
— Woodrow Wilson
Purpose and meaning begins with sharing with others. It gives us a greater sense of self. Think of what the world would be like if we all were independent of each other. It’s astounding to think that this country was built in the last 200 years. All of the roadways, bridges, skyscrapers, and cities all were built over that period of time, everyone sharing their skills and knowledge working together. If you want to find true purpose and meaning never be afraid to volunteer yourself. Make friends with everyone because you can never have too many friends. Friendship is the backbone of existence. It’s when we share our qualities, skills, and knowledge, that put’s unique purpose and meaning into our lives that we begin to feel complete and whole. It doesn’t matter what stage of life we are in; just the fact that we are alive and we have enriched someone else. That is true meaning! That is true purpose! Think about what gives your life meaning and purpose. It’s never too late to start something new, it’s never too late to discover what’s most important to you, and it’s never too late to share. Make a difference in your life by starting today.