We chase purpose as if life hands out prizes for finding one. But what if the real challenge is simply learning how to live our days well?

People often get confused about the “purpose” of life. I say there is none. Life is mostly about passing the time we’ve been given. I am the happiest when I feel I spent the day fully—as if I lived multiple days in one. That fullness rarely depends on any grand purpose. Most of the time, there was no purpose at all. It just felt natural. It felt satisfying. about the “purpose” of life. I say there is none. Life is mostly about passing the time we’ve been given. A successful life is simply one where the allotted time is spent with a sense of satisfaction.

The real challenge is that it’s not easy to find an activity that can keep us engaged for decades. Humans get bored quickly. We tire easily. We don’t like doing one thing forever—unless the return feels meaningful enough to justify the repetition.

In the modern world, employment and business have become the dominant solutions to this problem. They keep us occupied so we don’t constantly wonder what to do with eighty years of existence. Work keeps us busy for most of our lives so we don’t have to wonder what to do with eighty years of existence. We get bored, we get frustrated, but we continue because the rewards—money, stability, identity—are significant.

The trouble begins when those rewards stop feeling meaningful. That’s when our biological nature kicks in. Boredom resurfaces. Resentment grows. Suddenly, the job feels unbearable.

This is just one example. Not everyone feels this way, and that’s fine. But the point remains: life is not about chasing some higher purpose or doing “great things for humanity.” Nobody has ever truly changed the world in the way we imagine. Earth has existed for billions of years. Our presence here is a blink—even less.

Instead, we should find work that we can live with for a lifetime. Work that doesn’t bore us. Work we don’t want to retire from. If rewards help, great. If not, that’s fine too. A chess player can spend years playing without expecting anything in return. It keeps them occupied. It gives their time meaning and keeps the mind sharp. A farmer may earn little, but generations continue farming—not out of ignorance, but because it gives them a sense of connection to the Earth.

No work is right or wrong. Don’t exhaust yourself trying to find a “purpose.” If purpose helps you keep going, then use it. If not, let it go. What matters is that your work doesn’t harm others—and that it keeps you moving through life with a sense of satisfaction.

Every work is great work.

The point is simple: life isn’t about discovering a purpose. It’s about discovering a rhythm that keeps you alive inside.