Why Am I Here? - Thriving with Depression (Part 19)

Welcome back to the Thriving with Depression Series! Thank you for joining me on my adventure! 

To view the full series, check out our archive! As a reminder to new readers, you can start anywhere, even here as articles do not need to be read in any particular order. 

This episode is Why Am I Here?

That is a loaded question! Maybe I'm over promising what this article is going to deliver.

No, I will not be able to answer all of your questions, but I do plan to tackle this vitally important topic because I believe it affects the quality of life. 

Many of the world's religions and belief systems encompass a similar idea; that we are here to become better people. Life is about growing and becoming the best you! What this means and how you get there differ based on your individual faith/belief system and what you were taught growing up. 

I believe this is life's purpose, not specifically because of any religious or spiritual beliefs I hold, but because of what I see around me. From the time a child is born, they are learning. They learn basic skills such as walking and talking. They learn how to behave in society from their family. Then (in most countries), they attend pre-school and school to learn more about how the world works. In some instances, children attend religious or spiritual services where they learn theories of a creator or creators of a universe. We are always learning and growing. 

Assuming I am right, how does knowing this make a difference in your life? So, you don't fight it. 

Some of the most miserable people I know are not the ones trying to become better people. They are usually the ones who are fighting against becoming better. They believe life is looking out for numero uno. It is about what they want: money, power, pleasure. The needs of everyone else are secondary. 

Many are still wonderful people who help out others at times, they are just unclear or lost when it comes to priorities in life. Let's face it, there are many distractions in life, and it is easy to get caught up. But once you learn to go with the flow, rather than fight it, life becomes smoother.

I propose that there are 2 parts of becoming a better you:

Learning & Improvement 

If you focus on these 2 aspects, your life will become better. 

Will your cares suddenly go away? 

Will money magically appear in your bank account? 

Will your relatives and kids always behave? 

Will the dog stop chewing on the furniture?

Probably not. 

Although there are some theories that you can help to manifest what you want by your beliefs and attitudes. Even you don't subscribe to these philosophies, isn't kind of fun to think it could help?

Let's start with Part 1: Learning. 

Have you ever been in a classroom where the student behind you won't stop talking? It makes it difficult to listen to the teacher and learn the lesson. This is the same with life. If we are always talking, then it makes it hard to listen to others and to learn. That doesn't mean you should just accept what someone else has to say and not question it. But you can learn from another person, even if the information they impart is not necessarily accurate. You can learn as much from a fool as a wiseman!

Let's say you are an MMA fighter.
You have never beat your opponent, "The Flash." You study videos of "The Flash" in action to learn and study his strengths. How come he wins so many of his fights? What does he do well?

Then, you decide to study some of his other opponents to find out why they also have a hard time beating "The Flash." You learn what to get better at as well as what to avoid. In most instances, when appropriate, whenever you have the chance to learn both what to do as well as what best not to do, it will give you a more complete picture. 

Learning can be fun, especially when you are learning about a topic that you thoroughly enjoy. But learning can be very challenging as well. In fact, many times we can become resistant to learning. 

Let me give you a personal example. 

• I have a lot of experience in my field of work, over 25 years, but I took a break for health issues for a couple of years. 
• My field changed more in those 2 years than it had in the previous 15 years. 
• I went back to work and was very confused. It was almost like everyone was speaking a different language. New reports, regulations, and acronyms sprouted up seemingly overnight. 
• I no longer felt like an expert in my field but rather a novice. I had to learn all of the new information. 

I normally like learning, but I felt like I was drowning, not learning. 

I had to swallow my pride and constantly ask for help until I truly understood it and it took time... over a year of re-learning. I left work every day stressed, exhausted, frustrated, and inept... and I usually have a decent amount of confidence. But what about those that suffer with poor self-image and lack of confidence? Learning may be torture for them and they may try to avoid it at all costs.

If you don't learn, however, you can't go on to part 2: improvement.

Becoming a better person: Part 2 Improvement

If you cannot improve, then you will not become a better person.

Of course, not everyone believes (or wants to believe) that they are here to become a better person. Maybe they don't care why they are here. They just want to survive life perhaps with the aid of drugs and other sources of immediate gratification. This may be especially true if life has beat them down due to abuse, trauma, poor living conditions. 

Maybe you want to become more like God or another other religious figure you worship. Maybe you want to make sure your life positively affects other people. Whatever you believe, if you make the decision to learn and improve, life will be smoother. You will focus on improving life rather than letting your (or someone else's) ego get in the way of your path to improvement.

To Review:

Why Am I Here? To Become a Better Person

How? Learning>Improvement>A Better You

How Does Knowing This Affect Your Life? Focusing on this makes your life smoother.

Please join me next time as I delve into this subject more!