The answers to life is in this post

July 30th, 2007 • Related • Filed Under

This post will change your life forever and it will change it within the space of two minutes. What you will read is roughly 700 words and 700 words later you will be a changed person.

Some of you may not get it, some of you may not be ready for it, some of you will laugh because it was so easy and some of you will be angry with me.

You have everything you could possibly need and it’s all inside you, inside your mind, inside your body and inside your heart. All you need to do is realise it. The question is how do you realise it, how do you make it happen?

This post will show you all of this and more and you will look at life in a different light.

I would like to tell you a story first before I go on and show you the answers to life.

I have grown up questioning everything in my life and never really finding answers. I tried to block the questions out with pretending to enjoy life by drinking, taking some drugs, sleeping around, basically everything I could to block out big questions. Questions which would be answered later were not answered earlier because I was not ready.

Teachers came in and out of my life, some fleetingly, some stayed a while and others will be in my life forever.

The very fact that you are reading this blog tells me you too are looking for answers. What are your questions? Are you asking the right questions? How do you know what the right questions are? As you are looking for the answers you are more likely than most to find the right questions and the right answers.

Bear with me, I know you might want to get to the answers I promised, it’s worth it.

The books you read on personal development, the blogs you read, the people you listen to in the hope of finding the answers all help on your way to discovering yourself. Having said this you will not find it in any one book, or any one blog or any one person, it is a cumulative effect. Know this as the truth, you cannot find the answers in one book however it does not stop us looking for that book that will tell us everything.

How are you feeling right now at the prospect of someone telling you they have all the answers? Excited, anxious or are you thinking come on hurry up and get on with it.

What makes us excited in life? Is it the thought of attaining our desires and knowing that we will be happy once we have realised our dreams and desires. For two minutes you have read this post and hopefully been excited at the prospect of someone telling you something that may help you in life.

The answer to everything you ever wanted in life is:

The journey is what excites us and keeps us happy, the realised desire can be a let down.

That’s it, that’s the answer to keeping you happy in life. As you were reading this some of you might have been excited at the prospect of learning something about your life, for two minutes you were excited. It was in those two minutes that you were searching for meaning, it was in those two minutes you forgot yourself and your troubles, it was in the journey of hope that everything seemed possible. It’s the journey that keeps us going, it’s the journey that will keep you happy.

If you keep the journey in mind and not the outcome you will be a happier person.

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There Are 21 Responses So Far. »

Comment by Juggling Frogs on 30 July 2007:

Ithaka, by Cavafy is one of my favorite poems.

Comment by Quint on 31 July 2007:

You have made an excellent point in this post. So often we find ourselves at the end of a journey, and feel a sense of frustration, of being let down.

This is because we are focusing on the end result instead of the journey. We are expecting the fulfillment of the goal to be the fulfillment of our lives. In reality, we miss so much of the journey, so much of our lives, so much of the now.

Thanks for the reminder
Quint

Comment by Goal Setting College on 31 July 2007:

Many a times, we tend to seek the answer outside of ourselves, thinking that the books, magazines or blogs can help us with this. What’s our mission, our call to action, our purpose in life? As one plod along, he’ll realize that the answer is solely within himself. All it takes is a trigger.

Appreciating the journey helps in the search, but in my point of view, it’s still subjective if it IS the answer.

Steven, thanks for adding a refreshing, unique dimension to this thought.

Cheers, Ellesse

Comment by Shauna on 31 July 2007:

Hi, Steve;

I love the wind-up in this post, and the small point you made about the effect of personal development being cumulative - this is SO true. Every little piece you learn falls into place as you go and builds a more colourful and complex puzzle…and with each new piece you are able to comprehend and internalize the next one more deeply and fully. The destinations also have value, in my opinion, but the journey is where the fun and meaning are - NOW. Thanks so much for your honesty, as well.

Shauna

Comment by Armand on 2 August 2007:

The realised desire is always a let down (sooner or later that is). Why is that? Because you can comprehend and accomodate it in your kind, and the excitement of the rush, of exploring the unknown, of learning new things isn’t there. And 99% of the happiness is in walking the path to a certain destination, while reaching the destination accounts only for 1%.

A few years back I was playing quite a few computer games, economic simulations to be more precise. And -always-, the greatest satisfaction wasn’t in accomplishing the goals, but in the story that got me there.

The story has something magical about it because you can’t contain it within your mind, there are so many options, so many unknowns, so many possible outcomes for each choice… and those are the things that add the excitement and happiness to the story.
The result is something finite, something you can comprehend and store within your mind, and because of that it’s positive effects on your happiness are very limited.

I hope that all this makes sense.

Kind Regards,
Armand

Comment by Linda Rembowski on 2 August 2007:

The journey is definitely the part that keeps us actively engaged, but I don’t think our arrival is any less just because we may arrive. Once you reach where you’re going, there’s always another place to go from there. You might say then that the journey hasn’t officially ended, but sometimes there is a definite door that shuts, with the proverbial window opening.

Comment by Zakaria Mohamad on 3 August 2007:

Great Job.

Best Wishes from Malaysia.

Comment by Harveen on 3 August 2007:

What an inspiring article..I enjoyed reading it.
I think the answer to the meaning of life lies within us and yet we expend so much energy searching for it externally. You answer, though simple, is also very revealing. Thank you.

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Comment by Marc on 5 August 2007:

Your points here are valid, so long as we continuously strive to meet our goals. It is when laziness and procrastination sets in that the journey veers away from the path to happiness.

Comment by Steven Aitchison on 6 August 2007:

thanks everyone for your comments.

Quint, thanks for your comments here.

Ellesse, good point. My aim here was to show everyone that the journey is probably the most enjoyable part of gaining your desires. The journey is not the be all and end all and is certainly not ‘the answer’, but it makes us stop and think about life for a few minutes.

Shauna, thanks for your comments, you have made valid points here.

Hi Armand, your comments make perfect sense to me and the analogy of a computer game being a little like life is an excellent one, thanks for your comments.

Linda, you’re right; there is always another journey to go on, which is hwat makes life so exciting.

Hi Zakaria, greetings from Scotland

Harveen, thank you for your comments, much appreciated.

Hi Marc, thank you for your comments, if only we could find a way to stay focused.

Comment by Glenn Tan on 9 August 2007:

Hi Steven,
Thanks for this post, it has made life a more meaningful journey.Glad to hear that outcome isn’t everything but the key is in the process of learning.Cheers!

Comment by Steven Aitchison on 9 August 2007:

Hi Glenn

Good to have you back, how have you been doing?

Comment by Albert Arnold on 25 August 2007:

Life is an endless journey. We are going to live forever, somewhere. To stop learning is to stagnate and die. Though we may not get all the answers in one place at one time, One does learn some Personal Truths along the way. Example:
Your Mind is a beautiful machine- power it with the right thoughts and it will create the life you desire.
To a Long and Fruitful Journey on the ever upward spiral, May God be with you always, Albert

Comment by Cole on 28 January 2008:

hi steven
Your point sparks thought from many. The journey of life, however, is not all about the past.(as your post expresses, though hidden) The journey is instead in the present and towards the future.
The answer to the “meaning of life” is not inside you, instead the meaning encompasses you. For you are a part of a whole. The sooner you realiZe(you spelled realiZe wrong in your post)this, the better you will be for humanity.
Your Welcome
Cole Bryant

Comment by Steven Aitchison on 28 January 2008:

Hi Cole

I think you’ve missed the whole point of this article, have another read and see if it becomes a bit clearer.

To come to a realisation about life you first have to understand yourself before you can become part of the whole, so I see where you are coming from, but your point is not wholly correct, in my opinion.

If you are living in the UK, it is you who have spelled realiSe incorrectly. The American spelling of realiSe is realize, the sooner you realise this the better it will be for your English and your blogging etiquette.

Thanks you for your comments, they are much appreciated.

Comment by Meltem on 12 February 2008:

Hi Steven,
After thinking of few minutes about what you have written I say that you might be right on this. It fits perfectly my situation right now.

I lost my 13 yrs old daughter last summer (July 2007). My life has changed forever. I always question things in my life and developed my own beliefs. With the loss of my daughter all of a sudden I found myself so naked. All my beliefs were gone. Nothing in life made sense anymore. I could not find a meaning in anything anymore. My husband still asks every morning “why am I living today”. I still travel between reality and my own fantasy world where my daughter is still alive. Reality hurts so much and I want to hide into my own world. Besides all these emotional struggles I know I must live, at least long enough to care for my younger daughter.

…I can go on this for pages long but I guess I need to come to the point…

I am building a business that will run as a charitable business. I have created this mission for myself to survive in this world, create a meaning… I am dedicating my life to seek for answers for childhood cancer (causation to be specific).

Some people are morally supportive, some people said “doctors cannot tell, how can you…”, some people looked at me “ah, ok, good one” and so on. I am aware that I may not be able to find anything concrete in my life time but if I can find a clue or a lead that can be further investigated by the clinical researchers that will be a great success for me. In the worst case, I will leave a system with all the knowledge for the future generations to take forward. I made all the business plans already.

Coming to the answer to everything: My mission is the journey for me. It is exciting because finally I can use all my professional skills for a good cause and this makes me happy (bitter happiness to be true).
Thanks

Comment by Steven Aitchison on 13 February 2008:

Hi Meltem

I cannot begin to even imagine what it’s like to lose a child at such an early age and I don’t want to try and imagine it.

I am so happy that you have found a purpose again and ultimately helping others in the process. I honestly don’t know how brave I would be under the same circumstances so your courage is extremely admirable.

Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment, I think your comments will stay with me throughout the day.

Regards

Steve

Comment by Sarah Summer on 8 March 2008:

Hard work is essential to being happy in life. I love to get a job done, its a great feeling.

Comment by Evaine on 25 April 2008:

Good post. You make some great points that most people do not fully understand.

“The books you read on personal development, the blogs you read, the people you listen to in the hope of finding the answers all help on your way to discovering yourself. Having said this you will not find it in any one book, or any one blog or any one person, it is a cumulative effect. Know this as the truth, you cannot find the answers in one book however it does not stop us looking for that book that will tell us everything.”

I like how you explained that. Very helpful. Thanks.

Comment by Seb on 20 May 2008:

It’s Monday morning and the time is nine am, one is at work and busy. You are here now for the next eight hours for every day for next five days. And then you start over again, but you do not complain because this is life and you will spend the most of your life doing this unless you win the lottery or become a millionaire. Until the day you are 75 you will work and you will earn a living and just maybe you can retire peacefully. You then spend maybe 10 years enjoying what the last 55 have given you, a small house with a nice garden. Then one dies and life is over. If you believe in god then maybe there is something after this, if not then one has to confront the sobering thought that your existence is now meaningless and what follows is merely a full stop. Life continues but your’s does not, you are not the first and you are not the last, one perhaps feel’s that the very purpose of life then is…well what exactly? Those last ten years? This perhaps a very dim, aybe dark view on life but I tell you now that it is not a dark as the eternal blackness that follows after one’s final look at the world around. Then maybe one’s thoughts should not be focussed on working for those last 10 years as they ultimately are meaningless as they only delay what is inevitable it seems. Maybe we should all think of how to make life a bit bearable for the next. Working 9-5 will do nothing but use up the precious time you have left to make that difference in this world, albeit very small.