Finding Purpose and Meaning in Life

A friend once said to me, "There is no meaning in life, except what we create". At the time, I thought she was nuts. Now, I understand.

What is the meaning of your life? Some will say that it is to glorify God. Others will say to do good and make a difference. Still others account for their purpose for existence in their children. All of these ideas may have validity, but it still comes down to one thing. What do you decide is of value? What do you choose to be the purpose of your life?

The beauty of this concept is that again, you have the power to choose. Purpose and meaning is not some flighty ideal that only a few can comprehend. You have the power, the right, the responsibility to find your purpose in life. No one else can do it for you. With choice, there is power.

If you are sure of what your purpose is, if there is no doubt as to why you exist, good for you. Go for it with gusto. Embrace it, enjoy it, fulfill it. If you are not clear about your purpose, the meaning of your life, create it. You have so much in you to explore.

We humans have so much potential to create. We can create meaning, and we can create happiness. We can create misery and pain. We are creating our purpose and meaning every moment of the day. What purpose are you creating for you life, right now?

If you are still stuck, let me give you and idea. Make your purpose in life to be the best "You" that you can be. Work diligently on developing yourself, learning, growing, and most of all, loving yourself. If that is you major purpose, and you do it correctly, without judgement, in a healthy and balance manner, you cannot help but becoming a happier person, and your joy is sure to spill on to others.

Developing yourself to be the best possible "You" you can be does not mean seeking after fleeting and meaningless pleasure. That will only bring you pain. Developing the best possible you takes hard work and dedication. When I talk about being the "Best", I am talking about being the most noble, the most balanced, the most healthy (mentally and physically), the most authentic, the most honest, the most generous, the most logical, the most intelligent, the most loving, the most self-sustaining individual you can be.

Notice, I didn't say the best person in the world. I said, be the best you can be. If you start to compare yourself to others to see how much better you are then others, you will set yourself up for trouble. You will either be deflated, because there will always be someone better at something then you. Or you will falsely inflate your ego, which will only serve to bite you in the end.

In my opinion, being the "Best You" that you can is everyone's ultimate purpose. It will be in everyone's best interest if you concentrate on your best self-interest. It is also hard work. That is why so many people would rather opt out and let others make their meaning (God, your parents, your spouse etc) . If you take an active role in developing the "best possible you", you will make your world a better place, not just for you, but for those around you.

The bible says "Love your neighbour as yourself". You cannot fully love others until you truly love yourself. Make that your purpose, and the world will thank you.

Donna Hedley is the founder of http://www.strategies4happiness.com, a website dedicated to helping you to find your own personal Happiness Potential. She also publishes Strategies4Happiness, a bi-monthly e-mail newsletter full of ideas and insights to help you make your life more fulfilling, as well as practical strategies that can transform your life.

MORE RESOURCES:

Separate happiness from want - Economic Times

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.southernledger.com/ap/181819/Leighs_HappyGoLucky_could_extend_Oscar_touchcid=1255283952ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNGzmnPh58QMBO2yRTFyhOgr04OCogimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=oeKbbsUCqwoJimgurl=www.southernledger.com/images_ap/a6b0e9f3-0ae0-46da-b595-5f54b4657110-a6b0e9f3-0ae0-46da-b595-5f54b4657110.jpg width=80 height=50 alt= border=1brfont size=-2The Southern Ledger/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-0fd=Rurl=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Cosmic_Uplink/Separate_happiness_from_want/articleshow/3571184.cmscid=1255283952ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNH-eqNgXqOJ76_UJAF6Q294P4wwzwSeparate bhappiness/b from want/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fEconomic Times,nbsp;Indianbsp;-/font nobr7 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1bHappiness/b also tends to be a fleeting state of mind for a similar reason, explains Daniel Nettle in ‘bHappiness/b: the science behind your smile’, b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-1fd=Rurl=http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2008-10-07-leigh-happy-go-lucky_N.htmcid=1255283952ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNF0GZ75FsJoRmLvk9BOJBY_9lUzrwFor director Mike Leigh, it#39;s not all happy, or lucky/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrUSA Today/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-2fd=Rurl=http://www.indiewire.com/people/2008/10/indiewire_inter_191.htmlcid=1255283952ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNGi6Asb-2o65uKK2tA4H0zXXMVSqQindieWIRE INTERVIEW | quot;Happy-Go-Luckyquot; Director Mike Leigh/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrIndie Wire/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1255283952hl=ennobrall 96 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Prosperity may not be happiness key - NEWS.com.au

Midnight Happiness - WMBB-TV

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/2-0fd=Rurl=http://www.panhandleparade.com/index.php/mbb/article/midnight_happiness/mbb7710759/cid=1255229701ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNFvskISCYsQJ6bP2UsuswCQsPG51gMidnight bHappiness/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fWMBB-TV,nbsp;FLnbsp;-/font nobr23 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1b.../b in the November 4th, the Bay County Supervisor of Elections office stayed open until midnight on Monday hosting what they called Midnight bHappiness/b. b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/2-1fd=Rurl=http://www.wjhg.com/news/headlines/30492799.htmlcid=1255229701ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNHfJHFS6cAQmURBfPK4vOMuRdeatgMidnight bHappiness/b/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrWJHG-TV/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/2-2fd=Rurl=http://www.newsherald.com/news/hundreds_68653___article.html/bay_lynn.htmlcid=1255229701ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNEOF347clmmzU0mj8YeryF-mR4awQHundreds of Bay voters play beat the clock at registration drive/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrThe News Herald/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/2-3fd=Rurl=http://www.panhandleparade.com/index.php/mbb/article/voter_registration_deadline_monday_night/mbb7710732/cid=1255229701ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNGC1bOQCmSM1HxWSdOfr5oJHho1EQVoter Registration Deadline Monday Night/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrWMBB-TV/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/2-4fd=Rurl=http://www.wjhg.com/home/headlines/30463834.htmlcid=1255229701ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNFsNW6R4JAKbD2Qptl_Cd3Cn_9J8gnobrWJHG-TV/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1255229701hl=ennobrall 5 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

COLUMN: Planning and preparation is the key to happiness - Michigan Journal (subscription)

Life, liberty amp; pursuit of happiness - YourHub.com

Cupping it hot and sweet for health and happiness - Shanghai Daily

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/%3Fid%3D375792%26type%3DFeaturecid=0ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNHFT00yqmVmleA2QhL9-XmQmwvo0gimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=UykNu7XQnyUJimgurl=www.shanghaidaily.com/NewsImage/2008/2008-10/2008-10-07/20081007_375792_01.jpg width=80 height=60 alt= border=1brfont size=-2Shanghai Daily/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5-0fd=Rurl=http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/%3Fid%3D375792%26type%3DFeaturecid=0ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNHFT00yqmVmleA2QhL9-XmQmwvo0gCupping it hot and sweet for health and bhappiness/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fShanghai Daily,nbsp;Chinanbsp;-/font nobr6 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1By Zhang Qian | 2008-10-7 | NEWSPAPER EDITION THIS won#39;t hurt, much. This is just a love bruise from a session of TCM quot;fire cuppingquot; and it will help drive b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Shanghai seniors #39;generally#39; happy: Survey - China Daily

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-10/08/content_7086350.htmcid=1255299023ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNHoIZamwYPZovP347D-RshufRcMDQimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=hnezEMaubzEJimgurl=www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/images/attachement/jpg/site1/20081008/0013729e4abe0a56452701.jpg width=80 height=54 alt= border=1brfont size=-2China Daily/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-0fd=Rurl=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-10/08/content_7086350.htmcid=1255299023ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNHoIZamwYPZovP347D-RshufRcMDQShanghai seniors #39;generally#39; happy: Survey/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fChina Daily,nbsp;Chinanbsp;-/font nobr2 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The survey, conducted last month, found that the general quot;bhappiness/b indexquot; among Shanghai seniors was 77.17, a relatively high figure according to b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-1fd=Rurl=http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/%3Fid%3D375875%26type%3DMetrocid=1255299023ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNEFu-5aiSJwE9fu8MyjSUxpUDB50QSeniors say it#39;s OK being gray/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrShanghai Daily/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1255299023hl=ennobrall 3 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Why money can#39;t necessarily buy happiness... - Sify

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/7i-0fd=Rurl=http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php%3Fid%3D14771032cid=1254667348ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNEsFKfPXpRS4eZJO8mcfSwN6Sdq7gimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=9P8wI4exM6AJimgurl=im.sify.com/sifycmsimg/sep2008/Finance/14767585_rupee_currency_news.jpg width=80 height=52 alt= border=1brfont size=-2Sify/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/7-0fd=Rurl=http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php%3Fid%3D14771032cid=1254667348ei=3CXsSMeoHqqi9gS94v3_CAusg=AFQjCNEsFKfPXpRS4eZJO8mcfSwN6Sdq7gWhy money can#39;t necessarily buy bhappiness/b.../abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fSify,nbsp;Indianbsp;-/font nobrOct 5, 2008/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The bottom-line is that money can#39;t buy you bhappiness/b. That is something we probably knew all along. What is more interesting is why money can#39;t buy b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Childrens#39; happiness and health are hit by inequality - Irish Independent

Call for Happiness: Website Seeks Images of Joy - PR.com (press release)

Happiness - Google News

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