There is a widespread belief that having a great career, a wonderful family, and social respect and network is the ideal life. However, we have all too quickly learned that many people can boast about having a great job, a wonderful family, and social accolades, but they are far from happy in life. They have the feeling that something is missing in their lives when they wake up. Yeah, something is missing and that which is missing is central to life and the joy of living.

Take a look at this study from the University of California, which was recently published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry and covered by CNBC Make It. It was discovered that having a firm grasp on the meaning of one's life improves one's physical and mental health. Additionally, the person's cognitive function is improved. This demonstrates the importance of finding meaning in life, as acquiring the entire world would be even more depressing without it.

Many people today are driven by aspirations and dreams forged on the anvil of our formative experiences and exposure. Others exist solely for the purpose of experiencing pleasure and other emotions. Some exist solely to pay their bills. As a result, their motivation to get up every morning is to be able to earn money and pay bills. You will agree with me that it can be depressing to live life for the mere sake of prolonging existence.

The question of life's meaning isn't so much about what makes a life happy as it is about what makes a life fulfilled. Fulfilment can bring unimaginable happiness.  Fulfilment may sound intimidating, but it simply means completing the tasks for which I was created on this planet. Remember that each of us is unique (even down to our fingerprints).  Our uniqueness indicates that we are a solution to something specific on Earth, just as every lock has a specially designed key to open it.

When it comes to fulfilment, it's important to remember that a successful career, the purchase of a beautiful home, or the success of a business can only provide temporary happiness.  Could it be that such accomplishments are disconnected from life’s meaning and therefore, they do not contribute to our fulfilment? James Allen (the British philosophical writer and the pioneer of the self-help movement) said, “Until thought is linked with purpose, there can never be an intelligent accomplishment.” James Allen nailed the issue at the core by indicating that life’s activities or actions all begin with thoughts. As a result, unless one's life meaning or purpose is established, no action will result in intelligent accomplishment.  However, I will rather say that without purpose man cannot accomplish anything fulfilling.

Here's the rub: you can't have fulfilment without a purpose, but you can't have a purpose without a purpose giver. There are three factors at play here: Purpose-Giver, Purpose, and Fulfilment.