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Years ago I produced a booklet entitled ‘The Aim Of My Life, Just To Be Happy!

John Lennon is quoted to have said ‘When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.’

Martin Seligman Psychologist said ‘The happy life is defined by seeking pleasure and enjoyment or state of comfort and ease, feeling good at the moment. Whereas the meaningful life is bigger – meaning comes from belonging to and serving something beyond you.’

Nietzsche said ‘He who has a why to live for can bear almost anyhow.’

I guess I’ve learnt that ‘True happiness comes from a sense of purpose/meaning’ and for me that comes from serving others to be all they can be.

It may have taken years but I’m truly happy!

Emily Esfahani Smith Four Pillars of A Meaningful life are the following:

Belonging – comes from being in relationships where you are valued for who you are intrinsically and where you value others as well. True belonging springs from love and you can chose to cultivate belonging with others.

Transcendence – those rare moments where your sense of self fades away and you feel connected to a higher reality (could be church, art, writing). One study had a group of students look up at 200 feet tall eucalyptus trees for 1 minute; afterwards they felt less self-centred and even behaved more generously when given the chance to help someone

Purpose – finding your purpose is not the same as finding that job that makes you happy. Purpose is less about what you want than what you give. The key to purpose is using your strengths to serve others. Purpose gives you something to live for the ‘why’ that drives you forward.

The story you tell yourself about yourself – creating a narrative about the events of your life help you understand yourself. Our lives aren’t just lists of events; we can edit, reinterpret and change the way we tell our story. People leading meaningful lives tend to tell stories based on redemption, growth and love. Reflective thought on your life can help you change your story; embracing painful memories can lead to new insights and wisdom.

4 pillars of a meaningful life