Purpose in life: tips for finding purpose

Edwin Selij
June 15, 2017

Sometimes life is just weird and you don't really understand why things happen. In those cases, you may begin to doubt whether life has a purpose or even meaning at all. Some people determine for themselves where their lives should go and other people, on the contrary, think that a higher power, such as a god, karma or the cosmos, determines for them what the purpose of life is.

To find out what purpose there is for your life, in this blog I will discuss aimless living, what the purpose of life is according to philosophers and how you can find purpose in your life.

Living Aimlessly

For some people, living without a goal is a goal in itself. This is the case, for example, in some branches of Hinduism. By wanting nothing, it is easier to live in the here and now, and as a result, people are often happier.

If you consider the point of a life without purpose, the purpose of life is actually to find happiness by not actively wanting anything—and therefore, you won’t become unhappy if you don’t succeed.

What is the purpose of life

So the goal of life can be to find happiness and calm. This is often easier said than done and, of course, there are more people and beliefs that have something to say about the purpose of life.

The purpose of living by faith

For many religious people, the purpose of life is related to the purpose given to them by a higher power, such as God. God has a particular plan for them, and fulfilling that plan is the purpose of life for many believing people.

Some people use the Bible for this purpose, and the phrase “be fruitful and multiply” leads them to have dozens of children. But others see “God’s command” differently—for example, as a call to help their neighbors.

Then you also have the view of connecting with your soul. In that case, the purpose of life is often to have a strong connection spiritually and physically and to do something for the world that makes the world a better place so that your soul can enjoy it afterward or so that your soul has a nice life after your current life.

Following certain precepts is also important, so that people who do good have a nice life and people who don't do good don't. From this also come the sayings "god punishes right away" or just the belief in karma.

The purpose of living according to science

Science always looks at the purpose of life through the lens of evolution, and recently they have changed the meaning of that. Whereas previously you wanted to be the strongest and reproduce yourself for your genes (which is still the case), now evolution as humanity is changing.

This is also reflected in the new collaborations being forged worldwide. After all, if you as humanity see yourself as 1, war is no longer necessary and you can collectively address problems such as pollution. This also allows you to achieve other goals faster, such as colonizing the solar system and perhaps even making contact with extraterrestrials (if they exist at all) and otherwise finding a planet that resembles Earth.

So the purpose of life, according to science, is to stop being selfish and cooperate with each other (1).

The purpose of living according to artificial intelligence

Google and other Internet companies are experimenting with artificial intelligence (AI) and they also have their "thoughts" on what really is the purpose of life.

According to Google’s AI, the purpose of life is “to serve a greater whole.” However, Google also asked what the purpose of life is, and according to the AI, it is “to live forever” (2).

If you look at the purpose of life according to AI, it is to serve a greater good. This actually already seems pretty much in line with the purpose of life according to scientists.

The purpose of life according to philosophers

According to many philosophers, the purpose of life is to make the most of it. Aristotle, for example, believed that one of life’s purposes was to continuously develop one’s character in order to do good. He was referring to virtue through the development of a good character. This, he believed, led to a sense of happiness or well-being.

Modern philosophers reasonably align with this by indicating that developing a moral character can give life meaning. As a result, this can be a purpose of life.

Also, modern philosophers indicate that the purpose of life can differ for everyone; people can even live aimless lives. This is only a problem when people live purposeless lives by choice. In other words, they want to have a purpose of life, but circumstances prevent them from having a life with a clear purpose.

Modern philosophers also disconnect the purpose of life from the goal of being happy. Whereas Aristotle still clearly had that as the consequence and kind of purpose of life. However, there is still debate about this too. For other modern philosophers, a happy life does constitute the purpose of life. Although to do so you have to spend your whole life gaming in a virtual world (such as world of warcraft) instead of living. While other modern philosophers, on the contrary, think that achieving something significant in life is the purpose of life.

Slightly older philosophers, such as Sartre and Taylor correctly state that the purpose of life is something you determine for yourself. Sartre believes that the purpose of life is something you decide for yourself and Taylor indicates that fulfilling your deepest desires is the purpose of life.

Then there is a movement that states that life has no purpose in itself. People who believe in a god can also shape this. In fact, some people think that a divine power created them just to be there, as a kind of art object (3).

Therefore, perhaps first determine for yourself whether you care if your life has a purpose.

Finding purpose in your life

When you look at all these looks at life's purpose you see that there is not 1 single purpose in life. However, some similarities can be found in all these ways of looking at the purpose of life, namely:

If you feel at the moment that your life has no purpose, perhaps you can get a goal from this, or look at the other goals indicated earlier in this text. As some people also point out, there may not even be a purpose for your life that is predetermined.

Therefore, think above all about what you yourself want to achieve in life. If you find this difficult to answer, ask yourself this question.

What does life want from me?

By turning the question of what you want around, you can come up with very surprising answers and give yourself a purpose to live for. Especially if you feel comfortable having this you can apply this technique.

I can't see life anymore

Do you still feel that your life is not what it should be and that this text about whether life has purpose or not is not getting you anywhere? Do you suffer from thoughts of suicide because of this?

Then you can contact 113. This is a helpline for people who have these thoughts.

Or visit bestetherapeut.nl to find a therapist who can help you get rid of these kinds of thoughts.

Developing yourself, finding happiness and improving the world

Just now, do you feel that your life has purpose and that you want to develop yourself for finding happiness and making the world a better place? Then you can take the first steps today. For example, you can identify for yourself what makes you happy? What character traits you want to develop and in what way you can contribute to a better world.

By answering these questions, you will also know what you can do to fulfill your purpose in life.

To develop your character and build more self-confidence, perseverance, and social skills, you can use hypnosis, mindfulness, and meditation.

Want to learn more about this? Then come visit e and seminar or workshop and check out Hypnosis Institute Netherlands' training programs.

Also pin this handy infographic as a reminder:


Sources:

1. https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2010/mar/05/meaning-life-evolution-universe

2. https://www.sciencealert.com/google-s-ai-bot-thinks-the-purpose-of-life-is-to-live-forever

3. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/life-meaning/