Meaning

This post is a reflection for a course I am taking at Renison University College at the University of Waterloo. The course is titled Positive Psychology and is taught by Professor Denise Marigold, currently the Chair of Social Development Studies.

The topic of the reflection and the prompts are from the course, though the responses are my own.

Imagine fast-forwarding to the end of your life...

How do you want to be remembered, and by whom? Which of your accomplishments would you want others to talk about?

This is a really interesting question. The first thing that comes to mind is that I would want to be remembered by my children or partner (hopefully assuming such people have manifested). I would want to be remembered by my good friends.

I would hope they would remember me as a kind and caring person, like how I see my grandparents now. They are people who deeply care about others and treat others fairly and with love. I would hope by then that I could be remembered as not just intelligent but also as a wise person. Someone who provided people with emotional and personal/interpersonal guidance, not just intellectual guidance.

I hope those who remember me would be able to look back on my life and say I lived it in service to other people and made a difference in others' lives.

When you look back, are you satisfied with the life you have lived?

I am definitely satisfied with what I have accomplished. I take great pride in my work ethic and resourcefulness, and I have used that to get far more career success than I dreamed of when I was younger.

When I think about my close relationships and the impact I have made on others, I think there are things to be proud of and also room to improve. I am proud of the times I have tried to help strangers on the street and the times I have helped classmates to understand things they were struggling with. I think I could have done less to damage some relationships I have had over the years, so I hope to be able to make new and meaningful relationships in the future.

Are you living your life in such a way now that the above three things will be achieved?

Since I stared my journey towards finding meaning, I have noticed that I have spent a lot of my life in pursuit of personal goals to achieve things academically and professionally. I have spent a lot of time trying to get perfect grades and get the perfect career. I have started a journey to begin to understand myself and others better. I have tried to foster my current relationships and make new deeper relationships.

I want to spend more time on my emotional intelligence going forward rather than just my intellect. I have started a journey of exploring mindfulness and meditation to help me be more aware of my own feelings. These psychology courses have also been part of my journey towards better understanding the range of people out there. They complement the ways in which I have sought to meet new people and better understand them.

I don't plan to give up my ambitious pursuit of professional goals anytime soon though. I have started a habit of donating at least 10% of my gross income to other things I find meaningful. In this way I hope the two don't need to be in conflict, and I can give back some of the privileges I have been afforded.