What do you think is a defining characteristic of a good life? Well, I believe it’s fulfillment. The more you feel fulfilled, the better your life is. In fact, that’s the mission of Life Optimizer: helping you live a fulfilling life.
So how can we live fulfilling lives?
We can answer this question from multiple perspectives, but here I’d like to answer it from the perspective of motivation. There are three key factors for work motivation: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. I believe they can also help you live a fulfilling life.
Let’s dig into them one by one.
1. Autonomy
This factor deals with the ability to control your life. The more you feel that you are in control of your life, the more fulfilling your life becomes. Here is what Michael Hyatt wrote:
Productivity should free you to pursue what’s most important to you. The goal, the true objective of productivity, should be freedom.
He then defined freedom in four ways:
- Freedom to Focus: the ability to do your task with absolute attention and no distractions.
- Freedom to Be Present: the ability to be fully present wherever you are (e.g. with your family) without being interrupted.
- Freedom to Be Spontaneous: the ability to drop whatever you are doing and respond to a new situation spontaneously.
- Freedom to Do Nothing: the ability to do nothing and just enjoy the moment.
As you go through your life, you may want to make decisions that would improve your freedom. For instance, given two job offers, you might want to choose the one that would give you more flexibility even if it pays somewhat less.
2. Mastery
This factor deals with the satisfaction of getting better at something. When you are realizing your potential, you will feel fulfilled.
There are two mindsets here that you need to adopt: the growth mindset and the steward mindset. The growth mindset believes that you can develop your abilities; your abilities are not fixed. The steward mindset, on the other hand, believes that you have the responsibility to develop your abilities. Together, these two mindsets can maximize your personal growth.
3. Purpose
This factor deals with having a cause that’s bigger than yourself. When you feel that you are making a difference, you will feel fulfilled.
So find a cause that matters to you and find a way to contribute there. Or think of what you are doing as your way of contributing instead of just getting something. If you work as a teacher, for instance, think of it as your way to contribute to future generations rather than just a job.
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These three factors – autonomy, mastery, and purpose – can help you live a more fulfilling life. Improve yourself in them and you will feel fulfilled!
Any thoughts? Feel free to share them in the comments!
