For many, finding the so-called meaning of life is a life-long process. Ive spoken to people who believe the meaning of life is related to religion or family or humanity, or in some cases, even their lifes work.
Over time, Ive learned to synthesize all of these opinions into my own personal belief: the meaning of life is within each and every one of us and it is to love ourselves.
It would not surprise me if many who hear my version of the meaning of life become defensive or disagree. There is a common misconception about self-love that Ive heard over and over. Sometimes, people confuse loving self with being selfish or self-involved.
If you believe loving yourself is negative or makes you a bad person, youre still learning to understand the concept. Its important to me that as many people as possible begin to understand that loving ones self makes them a better person.
Its part of the reason I started MHLC and this website. I want people to understand the value of caring for themselves, being kind first to their own person, and accepting and loving themselves wholly and completely.
Loving Yourself is Your Most Important Responsibility
You were put on this earth to develop into a full and complete human being. At first, you required the care of an adult, but over time, you learned to care for yourself. This was likely the main goal of your caregivers: to teach you to take care of yourself.
Caring for you is so important it is one of the very first lessons learned as a child. This caring should continue into adulthood and throughout life, but we often lose site of what it means to care for ourselves.
In addition to survival and basic hygiene, caring also means loving, accepting, and nurturing. It is at this point many people begin to struggle.
The famous actor, Jim Carrey, shared his opinion on the meaning of life in one of his interviews. He stated, The meaning of life is to love yourself completely, free yourself and others from guilt and become totally visible no matter what the risk.
I love this quote because it puts the focus onto each individual and gives each a starting point for living his or her best life. In order to achieve your goals and dreams, in order to be the best you and be as valuable as possible to those around you, your efforts must begin with you.
You must love yourself first and give yourself permission to not feel bad about doing so. Mr. Carrey also touches on the importance of being genuine to you. In order to live the life you want, you must take risks and be true to your spirit.
Being visible in this world means not hiding behind your fears, or your preconceived notions, or your beliefs about what others want you to be.
Loving is an Action AND an Emotion
Ive learned that finding the meaning of life is much easier than it might seem. It might take a bit of time to master loving yourself, but once you understand your purpose is to care for yourself and make the most of your life, the endless cycle of self-mistreatment can end.
I encourage you to love yourself and take action. Do not just say you love yourself, but think about how you would behave when expressing love for a family member or friend. Love is an action and it is important for you to nurture and care for the love you have for yourself.
That is the true meaning of life.
