Have you gotten to a point in life where you’re left wondering if there is any meaning to your life? Do you feel lost and empty because you don’t know what next steps to take or do you feel unfulfilled, even in the midst of a busy routine?
Or maybe you’re currently unemployed, or you just lost something or someone you love. You’re not alone. More people feel that way more often than you think. I can’t say for everyone, but I know that we all walk this path at least once in our lifetime. So, don’t think something is wrong with you for feeling this way.
What truly matters in the long run is what you do with that feeling. And I am here to help you walk through that feeling so you can make the most of your situation.
And hey, I am not here to invalidate your feelings. Neither am I here to tell you to throw the feeling away and get up and get moving with purpose. No. In fact, it is dangerous to simply toss the feeling of life not having meaning out of the window. The fact that you feel it is an indication that something needs attention, to be changed, or you’re simply overwhelmed. If you don’t fix it, it will always find its way back to you.
So, let’s dive into what you can do whenever you start to feel like there’s nothing you’re really living for or that your life has no meaning.
First, what if you restructure your definition of true meaning?
I know, whenever we hear ‘true meaning’, we are either picturing a positive impact affecting many people and changing their lives or experiencing happiness and satisfaction that cannot be hidden. This definition is often the reason you feel like your life has no meaning.
But what if true meaning simply means surviving one day and coming out alive for the next?
What if true meaning is the very next breath you take, not one big LinkedIn-worthy achievement?
What if true meaning is simply staying committed to the boringness and monotony of your current life?
What if true meaning means that you grieve that loss in your unique way without having to behave for anyone?
When you shift your definition of true meaning to something more practical and more familiar with your current life’s demands, you’ll open that valve, let some pressure out, and find yourself again.
Embrace your life’s season
Listen, if at every given time in everybody’s life, we all get to experience that euphoria or satisfaction of always having something to do or an impact to make or fame to achieve, I promise you, we will all get burned out. In fact, the burnout is going to be so widespread that there wouldn’t be one sane person left on earth.
So, take it from me, it is completely normal to have seasons in your life where your life is just…mundane. Nothing fancy, nothing fun, and absolutely nothing someone else can envy. In fact, I strongly believe that the better you can understand the significance of these quiet seasons, the more grounded you’ll be in your identity (outside of activities), and the better you’ll be able to handle the louder, more outgoing seasons of your life.
So, if your current season is soaked in healing from an illness, pulling through 9-5 everyday, or just making sure two toddlers don’t kill themselves, enjoy it and use it as an opportunity to ground yourself in your true identity.
Max out your last bus stop
As humans, we are wired to always seek excitement and novelty (new things). But this tendency can also be detrimental, and may be the reason you feel like your life has no meaning – especially after you’ve achieved remarkable feats in a not-so-distant past. Our quest for more and new activities is undoubtedly ruining our ability to max out the juice from the past and present.
So, if you’re feeling like your life has no meaning, look at the last important thing you did, or the last thing that really made you feel fulfilled. If you have a living relationship with God, go back to the last instructions He gave you. Ask yourself, “have I maxed out this opportunity?”, “is there something else I can do, learn, or create out of this?” Then, explore that past opportunity over again.
You’d be surprised at the amount of substance you can still get out of it to introduce meaning and activity into your life again – without having to force anything.
Snap out of it – do just one thing now
This one might sound harsh, that’s why I left it for the very last. But this one changes everything. You might just need to snap out of that feeling that your life has no meaning. Sometimes, that feeling is just temporary, and can come as a result of the following:
- a minor or major failure you may have just experienced and are not seriously acknowledging its impact on you.
- comparing yourself and your life’s process with other people’s outcomes.
- spending time doing something that doesn’t help you get better or one you’re not very proud of (aka bad habits).
So, you can snap out of feeling like your life has no meaning by doing just one thing at this very moment. That one thing could be:
- highlighting and learning the lessons you need to learn from whatever failures you’ve experienced.
- remembering that the people you’re comparing yourself to have processes you may never want to experience. You can ask them what their ugly processes looked like (if you know them personally) or dig through social media to find them.
- doing just one thing now that would help you quit the bad habits that perpetuate those feelings.
- doing something that adds value or happiness to someone else.
- doing something that fires up your spirit. It could be listening to a song, having a moment of worship or prayer, listening to at least 5 minutes of a podcast by someone who inspires you, a conversation with a friend or your spouse, or a walk through nature. Just take an action that helps you jettison that feeling.
YOU WILL BE FINE BECAUSE YOUR LIFE HAS MEANING – IRRESPECTIVE OF WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE NOW. WE JUST DON’T GET TO FEEL THAT MEANING EVERY SINGLE TIME – BUT IT IS THERE!
