XIV Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2022

The meaning of human life is more philosophical than logical. Every person on earth is unique - he is a person. And as a person, he has a set of qualities unique to him, which form his character and world view. Depending on temperament, upbringing and hereditary factors form the values of life and views of a person on certain issues.

The meaning of life is established in a person's mind in the course of life. In the course of life, the understanding of the meaning of life may change. For example, if at a young age a man sees the meaning of his life in having fun with friends, then at a mature age his values can change radically, and he begins to see the meaning of life in family happiness, calmness, comfort.

It also happens that sometimes a person loses the meaning of his life. It is a difficult and hard trial, during which he has to rethink all his life in search of a new meaning. After all, a man without life meaning is a spiritually dead man. Loss of life meaning makes life aimless and useless. Living such a life a person simply cannot be happy. Human beings have certain needs: to eat, sleep, communicate and love. It is the satisfaction of needs that brings joy and satisfaction to human life. The meaning of life is nothing more than an overwhelming desire to satisfy a need.

What is the meaning of human life? There is no simple answer to this question. Each person has their own meaning of life: some people find wealth and fame as their main reason for living, some people can't live without their favourite job or hobby, some people just live for the people they love. Whatever the case may be, sometimes it is useful to think about the meaning of your own life. It helps to understand oneself, to set specific goals for one's life and to do one's best to achieve them.

For our younger generation, the search for the meaning of life is becoming more and more relevant: as the world becomes more complex every year, it becomes more and more difficult to hear our own desires, goals and meanings. The fact is that every day we are confronted with an enormous flow of information. One example is the Internet, which people are obsessed with. Look at the number of their subscriptions in social networks: dozens of communities daily post hundreds of news and this is only one channel for obtaining information.

In today's reality, how do we learn to hear ourselves?

What is meaning :

The meaning of life is man's awareness of the direction of his life, his conscious construction of a hierarchy of values, his awareness of his capabilities and his aspiration to realize them.

What do we mean by being conscious? Living consciously means analyzing oneself, setting goals and striving to achieve them, not being distracted by momentary pleasures when possible.

Feeling of meaningfulness of one's life also depends to a large extent on belonging to a small (family, work collective, friends) or large social group (religious community, nation), to belonging to some important cause or goal. A person begins to get satisfaction from life because he/she becomes a part of a family or a working group and feels his/her need: he/she has certain tasks, duties, a duty (which does not burden him/her, on the contrary, it enriches him/her).  

Tips for finding meaning

The following are general tips for giving your life new meaning:

1. Believing

It is important for a person in this life to believe in something, to have hope in something. This may be religious faith, or it may be faith in an idea, or it may be more generally faith in science, art or simply human kindness. 

One of the outstanding psychologists of the 20th century and the founder of logotherapy (treatment with meaning), Viktor Frankl, observed while in a concentration camp that people with a rich inner world, including people with religion, had a higher survival rate. The person with faith views what happens to him as a trial or punishment for a sinful life, which gives meaning to his suffering, and enables him to survive the situation in which he finds himself.

2. Goals

Meaningful and well-worked out goals give meaning and direction to life.

There are several basic categories in which people usually set goals for themselves:

To have (goals of a material nature: things, cars, real estate, etc.).

To know (everything that relates to education: courses, advanced training, diplomas, PhD thesis, etc.)

Relate (what kind of relationship I want with my husband/wife, work colleagues, etc.).

To be (what do I want to be in this life? Architect, businessman, mother/father, philanthropist, etc.).

To act (there may be some specific goals regarding professional growth or personal development. For example: to fulfill a sales plan for the quarter, or, to lose 7 kg of weight by June, etc.).

3. A life goal

It is important to find an activity that best matches your values, desires and aspirations. If you have not yet found one, do not despair and keep looking and trying. And it is best to stick to Theodore Roosevelt's rule in life, "Do what you can with what you have, where you are!"

4. Altruism

Any kind of selfless help to neighbours in need. It can be some kind of volunteering as part of social assistance to the poor. It could be almsgiving for the poor. Donations of clothes to orphanages, etc.

5. Hobbies

Having an occupation that brings you pleasure, whether you get paid for it or not, also gives your life meaning and positive emotions. If you don't have a hobby in your life, make sure you get one. Try it, be curious, keep the urge to surprise and be amazed.

6. Sensible Hedonism

Sensual and corporal pleasures can't be the meaning of life in themselves, but their absence significantly reduces the positive emotional background and overall satisfaction of life. Remember to spoil yourself with tasty meals, spending time with your loved one or family outdoors. Go to the movies, theatres and all those places that you like and energize you in a positive way.

7. Individual development

Be aware of your personal development. Develop yourself as a professional. Do self-development, overcome yourself and get better day by day. Self-development is important enough, but it's also important what kind of people you surround yourself with. Try to make sure they are people who are interested in you and who are interested in you, because a lot depends on the environment in which you find yourself and develop yourself. You influence the environment, but the environment also influences you. 

8. Health

This involves taking care of yourself. Health of the body, of the psyche. Exercise, eat healthy foods. Don't forget to pay attention to information hygiene: don't spend too much time in front of your computer, gadget or TV. Try to switch off all your devices at least 2 hours before you go to sleep, and regularly organize for yourself a digital detox.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, I would like to say that the greatest influence on the feeling of meaning in our lives is quality positive relationships with people. A group of scientists led by psychiatrist Robert Woldinger conducted the famous Harvard study of 75 years of two groups of people: poor families from Boston and Harvard graduates. The scientists set out to investigate and discover what really makes a person happy. After researching and interviewing the subjects, psychologists concluded that what makes people happy is neither a career, nor a house, a flat, a car, or money, nor social status and achievements, but good, positive relationships with people.

If you build and have positive relationships with your family, your colleagues, your friends, you can be a happy and healthy person. Even if you don't like your job, have some troubles or health problems, but you are living in harmony with yourself, all the problems that happen to you, cannot take away your sense of meaning in your life. After all, there are people who care about you and who care about you, and this fills your life with meaning, satisfaction and joy.

LIST OF REFERENCES USED:

In Search of Happiness, by Douglas Kennedy;

Book "The Scimitar," by Angel de Cuatier;

The book "Heal Your Life" by Louise Hay;

Master-class "Dao of Life", author - Irina Hakamada;

The book "Four sacred secrets", by Krishnaji, Pritaji.

Код для цитирования: Скопировать