Gregg Braden

We're talking about a cognitive psychological phenomenon, the meaning in life. This is what people are talking about when they say, even though my life has been filled with frustration and failure and betrayal and guilt and shame, I still want to keep going because my life is meaningful. Okay?

We're talking about a cognitive psychological phenomenon, the meaning in life. This is what people are talking about when they say, even though my life has been filled with frustration and failure and betrayal and guilt and shame, I still want to keep going because my life is meaningful. Okay?

And we can maybe talk a little bit later about how it's not the same thing as subjective well-being or mastery of one's environment. Okay. If you take a look at the four, there's four features of meaning in life. One is coherence. What people mean is there's something like the structure of their experience that's like the coherence of a sentence. Well, what does that mean?

And we can maybe talk a little bit later about how it's not the same thing as subjective well-being or mastery of one's environment. Okay. If you take a look at the four, there's four features of meaning in life. One is coherence. What people mean is there's something like the structure of their experience that's like the coherence of a sentence. Well, what does that mean?

And we can maybe talk a little bit later about how it's not the same thing as subjective well-being or mastery of one's environment. Okay. If you take a look at the four, there's four features of meaning in life. One is coherence. What people mean is there's something like the structure of their experience that's like the coherence of a sentence. Well, what does that mean?

Well, coherence is the opposite of absurdity. Absurdity is when you have two perspectives that are clashing so that one undermines the other. So here we are. You and I, we're in this little perspective. We're here and we're doing all this stuff and it's also meaningful. And then I get you to zoom out to the entire universe, the cosmic perspective.

Well, coherence is the opposite of absurdity. Absurdity is when you have two perspectives that are clashing so that one undermines the other. So here we are. You and I, we're in this little perspective. We're here and we're doing all this stuff and it's also meaningful. And then I get you to zoom out to the entire universe, the cosmic perspective.

Well, coherence is the opposite of absurdity. Absurdity is when you have two perspectives that are clashing so that one undermines the other. So here we are. You and I, we're in this little perspective. We're here and we're doing all this stuff and it's also meaningful. And then I get you to zoom out to the entire universe, the cosmic perspective.

And from that perspective, our little lives could seem insignificant, right? They could seem absurd. There's a clash. Now, before that gets too dark, realize that we have a way of dealing with reality. potential absurdity between perspectives and reconciling it with an insight. So we already have a sense of humor. That's what humor is.

And from that perspective, our little lives could seem insignificant, right? They could seem absurd. There's a clash. Now, before that gets too dark, realize that we have a way of dealing with reality. potential absurdity between perspectives and reconciling it with an insight. So we already have a sense of humor. That's what humor is.

And from that perspective, our little lives could seem insignificant, right? They could seem absurd. There's a clash. Now, before that gets too dark, realize that we have a way of dealing with reality. potential absurdity between perspectives and reconciling it with an insight. So we already have a sense of humor. That's what humor is.

Humor is when there's a clash between perspectives and then you get an insight that reconciles it. So just to hold that out so people don't admit, because when I sometimes say that, that's kind of a dark thing to say. Okay, so you want that. The next is, right, when I said the cat is on the mat, it oriented you. It made you look in a particular direction, gave you a focus.

Humor is when there's a clash between perspectives and then you get an insight that reconciles it. So just to hold that out so people don't admit, because when I sometimes say that, that's kind of a dark thing to say. Okay, so you want that. The next is, right, when I said the cat is on the mat, it oriented you. It made you look in a particular direction, gave you a focus.

Humor is when there's a clash between perspectives and then you get an insight that reconciles it. So just to hold that out so people don't admit, because when I sometimes say that, that's kind of a dark thing to say. Okay, so you want that. The next is, right, when I said the cat is on the mat, it oriented you. It made you look in a particular direction, gave you a focus.

So the next factor is called purpose. But the problem, I don't like that term because our culture is all about purpose. And we think of purpose as some end goal state of something we have to have, some status, some power. I got to get to, got to fulfill my purpose. The problem with that is if you... And I realized this in high school and I went around writing, there is no purpose.

So the next factor is called purpose. But the problem, I don't like that term because our culture is all about purpose. And we think of purpose as some end goal state of something we have to have, some status, some power. I got to get to, got to fulfill my purpose. The problem with that is if you... And I realized this in high school and I went around writing, there is no purpose.

So the next factor is called purpose. But the problem, I don't like that term because our culture is all about purpose. And we think of purpose as some end goal state of something we have to have, some status, some power. I got to get to, got to fulfill my purpose. The problem with that is if you... And I realized this in high school and I went around writing, there is no purpose.

Because I realized even then, before I saw any of this research, that doesn't work. Because if you never get it, your life was meaningless. And once you get it, once you've got your thing, your purpose, then your life becomes meaningless. So don't think about purpose that way. Think about it as orientation.

Because I realized even then, before I saw any of this research, that doesn't work. Because if you never get it, your life was meaningless. And once you get it, once you've got your thing, your purpose, then your life becomes meaningless. So don't think about purpose that way. Think about it as orientation.

Because I realized even then, before I saw any of this research, that doesn't work. Because if you never get it, your life was meaningless. And once you get it, once you've got your thing, your purpose, then your life becomes meaningless. So don't think about purpose that way. Think about it as orientation.