What Gives Your Life Meaning?
BY JACKIE LEON
What Gives Your Life Meaning?
I've been thinking about this question a lot lately. Not in an abstract, philosophical way, but in the everyday, practical sense. Because here's what I believe: we all have our own unique answer to what makes life meaningful. But there are some fundamental principles we naturally gravitate toward, almost like life itself guides us there.
Bruce Feiler calls them Agency, Belonging, and Cause. And the more I reflect on them, the more I see how these three pillars show up in every conversation I have, every client I work with, every person trying to figure out their next chapter.
Agency is about control over your own story. It's the feeling that you're steering your life, not just being swept along by it. When you lack agency, you feel stuck, powerless, like someone else is writing your script.
Ask yourself: Where in my life am I waiting for permission instead of taking ownership?
Belonging is about connection, to people, to communities, to something bigger than yourself. We're wired for it. When we feel like we don't belong anywhere, life loses its warmth. But when we find our people, our place? Everything changes.
Ask yourself: Where do I feel most like myself, and am I spending enough time there?
Cause is about purpose beyond yourself. It's what you're fighting for, building toward, contributing to. It's the legacy you're leaving, even if you never call it that. Without cause, success feels hollow. With it, even the hard days make sense.
Ask yourself: What would I want people to say I stood for?
Here's the thing: these aren't fixed. They shift as we evolve. Your agency today might look different than it did five years ago. Your sense of belonging might need to be rebuilt. Your cause might be calling you toward something new.
But you don't have to wait to feel more of this.
You can choose one thing today, right now, that brings more meaning into your life.
Maybe it's saying no to something that drains your agency. Maybe it's reaching out to someone who makes you feel like you belong. Maybe it's taking one small step toward the cause that's been tugging at your heart.
Because here's what I know for sure: your life matters. Not someday. Not when you've figured it all out. Right now.
So what's the one thing you're going to do today?