In Part 1 of this article I discussed my personal struggle with finding purpose and meaning in life and comprehending my mortality. Heavy stuff. Based on the number of articles I found in my research, however, I am not alone. If finding greater meaning is unnecessary for your happiness I am truly glad for you. If you are like me, however, and strive to understand more about the universe, yourself, and how the two fit together, by all means read on.

As I mentioned in Part 1, I have found four elements that are key to finding one’s purpose, and thus happiness. Let me be clear this is just my opinion and is an ever evolving hypothesis. These four elements are: 1.) What are you good at, 2.) What makes you happy, 3.) What helps others, and 4.) Do your best.

Find something you are good at.

All of us have unique talents and it generally feels good use these talents. We naturally gravitate toward the areas where we find success. In school I struggled with advanced math and science but I always found articulating my thoughts through written word easy. I also found I was, and am, terrible in groups, though I was good at interpersonal communication. So, with my fitness education and experience, personal training and any kind of sales position came easily to me. Take a look at talents, jobs, or situations where you have had success in the past. These are often good places to start.

Find something that makes you happy.

People talk about “finding their happy place”. Often this is not a place at all but an activity or an environment. A better term might be to discover that about which you are truly passionate. What makes you want to get out of bed every day? What puts a smile on your face? This is not to say that everything about what we enjoy doing is fun or easy. Sometimes doing what makes you happy and finding your path will have challenges and make you uncomfortable. That is ok. In fact, that is good. It shows you are willing to sacrifice to pursue your passion. It will make you work harder, make you stronger, and give you an appreciation for success when you find it. If you could spend your time doing anything at all what would it be?

Serve God by serving others.

I do not often write about my religious beliefs because I feel that people will know what you stand for by your actions and not by what you say. I do, however, feel that I would be remiss if I did not write something about the interconnectedness of faith, service, and happiness. I believe we are ultimately put on this Earth to serve God and we serve God by serving others. If we ignore this fundamental call to service we cannot be truly happy because we are basing our happiness on things that are fleeting such as short-term pleasure and material gain.
Regardless of my religious beliefs, I have found that purpose and joy come from giving to others. Where can your talents be put to the best use? Maybe you are interested in feeding the needy or helping the environment. Maybe you are simply really good at helping to brighten the moods of those around you. Service does not have to be something so big that you will be nominated for sainthood. Most of life is made up of small moments and we can use these moments to perform many small acts of kindness that will have a huge impact on the lives of others.
Do your best.

You, by yourself, will not solve all of the world’s problems. So, stop worrying all of the time about things you cannot control. I will admit, this is a personal struggle.This doesn’t mean that you should not try to contribute. On the contrary, you should use your talents to improve whatever small part of this complex world you can. You will stumble and fall, but you can also make the decision to get back up and carry on.

To find your purpose, instead of trying to save the world try instead to find what is important to you; your passion. Then use the skills and talents God has given you to contribute, in some small way, to make the world a better place. Usually these skills are going to be something that you are not only good at, but also find fun and enjoyable. Last, do your best but allow that you are fallible and will make mistakes regardless of how noble your intentions. Learn from those mistakes, try to do better in the future, and move on.

Viewing life from this perspective will not solve all of your existential problems. You will still occasionally struggle to find meaning, lose your temper, get depressed, be sad, etc. It will, however, give you a beacon in a sea of meaninglessness and will be a credo upon which to base your life’s mission.