Finding Meaning in Your Life

07 Feb Finding Meaning in Your Life

Have you ever wondered why you do whatever it is you do each day? Filling time with actions that aren’t significant for us can leave us feeling hollow, but focusing our attention on what really matters can fill us with a strong sense of purpose and meaning. It can dramatically change how we feel about things.

Making supper

For instance, I’d rather not get supper ready day after day. Neither does my husband get excited about making supper. What I’ve discovered, however, is that when we do it together, we talk about what to make, and then each do different tasks of making the meal, such as chopping or stirring.

This gives meal preparation more meaning for me: it’s the two of us doing something together, we’re each taking care of the other, we’re hearing about the happenings of each other’s day.

Finding your own meaning

Here are some questions to help you think about what matters most to you. Take the time to really explore each question. Keep asking, “Why does this matter to me?” as part of your exploration.

What do you like doing for other people?

What do you like doing with other people?

Who do you like to spend time with?

What do you like to do for fun?

What are you the most proud about?

Where or what is your favourite place?

What makes a good day for you?

What are you looking forward to?

What is the most important part of your life?

What do you like about having a pet?

What kinds of things do you miss doing?

What is your favourite way of passing the time?

What do you think of when you first wake up each day?

What worries you?

Making change

You may find, after thinking about what really matters to you, that you want to spend more time doing some things, and little or no time on other things that have crept into your life.

Sometimes life throws a spanner in the works that forces us to re-evaluate what means the most to us.

Conversely, it may feel very freeing to let go of things that hold less meaning than perhaps they once did, to make room for other things that matter more. It’s a way of simplifying life, to peel activities all the way down to what matters most.