How Do You Make Life Meaningful?

A couple weeks ago, I was talking with a teenage student of mine about Christopher McCandless, who is the central figure in the movie “Into the Wild.” McCandless was a real-life person who, after graduating from college, left his life behind, created a new name for himself “Alexander Supertramp,” hitchhiked around the country, and lived for more than 100 days on his own in the Alaskan wilderness, where he eventually died. 

There are many opinions of his story; about whether or not he was a foolish young adult or not, but nevertheless, his story is an interesting one. 

My student and I discussed how McCandless’s story fascinated us. I told her that I believed that by going on his own personal odyssey, he was doing something that gave his life meaning. From McCandless’s journals, notes, and the interviews with people he interacted with, he was going through his own rite of passage. By hitchhiking to Alaska and living on his own (including hunting and gathering his own food), one can conclude that he wanted to prove to himself that he could be an independent self-sustaining individual who didn’t need to rely on society. 

Even though most of us won't even think about going through what McCandless did, all of us are faced with the challenges of making our lives as meaningful as possible. My student and I continued our conversation about what people do to make their lives meaningful. We all have to find our own way; finding meaning in life varies from person to person. 

With the hopes of being a good adult role model, we talked about what I do. I try to spend as much of my time doing things that give me satisfaction: spend time with family, staying connected with friends and loved ones, and just plainly doing things that make me happy. 

What brings me joy may look different to you and everyone else. That’s part of the challenge of life; it’s all part of the adventure. We don’t have to go into the wild to bring meaning into our lives. We can all find our own version of the Alaskan wilderness. 

Roderick Conwi writes about personal and professional development at Nourishment Notes. He is also the author of The Procrastinator's Quick Guide To Getting It Done. To get powerful insights to enhance your day, join his FREE newsletter.