What is the meaning of life?

It's a question most of us have asked at some point in our lives, but few of us know the answer to. In order to get closer to finding some type of answer, we do all sorts of things.

We work to death to save money that may potentially go unused, but we may need it later in life or for retirement. We max out our credit cards to see friends and family for holidays or to buy that new iPhone. We take out loans for cars and houses and universities.

No matter what it may be, we hope that by doing so, we will get one step closer to finding some type of meaning in life and understanding our purpose. If that's the case, then we can feel a sense of reassurance and justification for everything that we do or spend our money on.

But, what if there is no purpose to all of this? That's the scary reality of it all, right? We all might just be thrown on this planet together, with no sense of structure or real reason to be here, other than the fact that we simply are.

If that's the case, it's up to us to find some individual meaning in each of our lives. Often, I think where we get confused and mixed up is when we try to live our lives based off of what is expected of us.

Think about a society where there is no judgment. No pressure. No stress. No overwhelming anxiety of feeling like you have to always be "on" and have your life together. What if we all lived in a society where we just lived our lives and people were okay with that?

Sadly, that's probably never going to happen. I've grown to accept that. That's why I've started to live my life for me, perhaps for the first time in my life.

I feel like for most of my life, I've always done things because I felt like I had to or because that was what was expected of me from others or societal standards. Sure, some things like studying abroad were purely for me and to gain some new experiences in life.

It's honestly been experiences like that which have given me a sense of purpose and have helped me to understand this mess of a world we live in a little better. While I know it's not feasible for everyone and one needs money to do anything in this world, I believe that travel is an essential part of living.

Even if you can't afford to fly to Paris or take a cruise to Antarctica, drive down the highway past your hometown and see where the road takes you. Go to a different restaurant one day. Talk to the person sitting next to you and see how their day is going, because they may be having the worst day imaginable and they may feel as if they are alone on this planet of seven billion people.

When it all comes down to it, that's what life is about. The connections that we make with people and the influence we leave on the people that we meet. While we're not all going to be Martin Luther Kings or Gandhis or David Bowies, we are who we are.

The world would be incomplete without every single person currently living and breathing on this planet. While we never may quite know the answer to the meaning of life, we can strive to form our own meaning and live life to the fullest for the short time that we are here.

Earth is estimated to be around 4.54 billion years old. Out of the duration of that time, humans have only lived on the Earth for around 200,000 years. The odds of our lives having some divine meaning in the universe are, unfortunately, rather slim.

That doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing. The best thing that we can do while we're here is to try and make sure the world is a better place by the time that we're gone. Every human is able to do that in a different way.

It may be that doctor saving lives in a hospital. It may be that engineer creating technology that is beyond human comprehension, and yet, is somehow possible. It may be that band writing and performing songs in stadiums full of people, helping them to feel less alone in the world.

Or, it may be a writer like myself, observing and utilizing the only outlet he knows best to try and gain a sense of purpose. This has been working for me pretty well for 23 years, so there's no point in stopping now.