Finding meaning is one of those trendy phrases that gets thrown around a lot these days. But, what does finding meaning really involve? What the bloody-hell is it and how do we find it? Here’s a thought. Rather than trying to find meaning in life, find what feels meaningless and get rid of it.
Finding meaning by removing
Finding meaning by removing is about noticing what feels meaningless. And if it feels meaningless, stop doing it. For, why do something that you feel so unenthusiastic about? The idea is that simply by noticing and removing all that feels meaningless, you end-up finding meaning in a broader sense. Because what is left must by definition be meaningful!
This approach is far more robust than complicating your life with all manner of scam advice and fake self-help.
Finding meaning in life
Going deeper, perhaps this question of meaning itself is flawed, in the way that it is usually posed. Flawed because it has a hidden assumption within it. An assumption that human life is somehow different or special in its fundamental essence. Human beings indeed are different and perhaps even special, but the difference is not one of fundamental essence. Although, that is what we would like to believe.
So, if one asks what the meaning of human life is, they should also ask what the meaning of a cat’s life or a tree’s life is? For, it is in this false separation of humans from the entire realm of nature that the question becomes insoluble. It appears insoluble not because it cannot be solved, but because its premise is fundamentally flawed.
The meaning of life is life itself
Approached in this way, we could very easily say that the meaning of life is, life. That life derives its meaning from its very existence, such that the point of life is to live.
It has inherent meaning and needs nothing extra!
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Harsha is a 1:1 coach and independent thinker based in London. He empowers people to find more clarity, confidence and focus in their lives — to cut through the noise, in a world so full of it. Harsha’s new book, Machine Ego: Tragedy of the Modern Mind, is now available in paperback and Kindle through Amazon.
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