A question I have asked myself, like many others, is "What is my life's purpose?" Is this an illusion? I don't think there is a purpose for my life, or for anyone else's. Up until recently our purpose was only one thing - to survive and reproduce. This is what our bodies had evolved to do. Eventually, as a result of our brain's development and the consequent use of weapons, languages and social structures, we found ourselves at the top of the food chain. [[Person - John Danaher]] put it nicely [when he said](https://youtu.be/ktuw6Ow4sd0?t=12439) that "Humanity found itself in a crisis that emerged out of its own success." Indeed, what does an organism - with a sole purpose of survival - do when it has more or less a guaranteed survival? Only then is it able to, inevitably, grasp for meaning. John says that if the battle for survival was hard, the battle for meaning is ten times harder. Possibly, and considering that suicide is a [very real problem](https://afsp.org/suicide-statistics/), there must be some legitimacy to this. I used to ask myself this question, and it would only cause me distress: [[Thought - What am I passionate about|I'm not passionate about any one thing]] and whenever I start something, I eventually get bored of it given enough time. I also was never really in want of anything - I was fortunate, and [[Fixed Mindset vs Growth Mindset|consequently unfortunate]], enough to get everything I asked for. I also think that I've got a good base when it comes to intellect, emotional intelligence, social ability and physical fitness. If I was better at one of the above, out of necessity I would move in that direction. However currently I'm stuck, not sure which talents I should put to use and how. So what then is the way forward? One strategy is [[Thought - Optimizing for fewest regrets]]. *** ## Footnotes Resources - [Movie - About Time - The Secret Formula for Happiness](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUB-sCiZIUw)