Make life meaningful

I've been laidoff, searching for a job. Had stepped out for a walk and I saw my school teacher crossing the road from the other side. I, being a person who always talks to people, turned my face and sneaked away, not having the confidence to tell someone that I'm unemployed if asked. Feels bad. 🥲

I have been a little caught up with numerous things in my life lately and have finally found some free time to open up myself to new experiences. I had a wishlist of shows and movies that I wanted to watch but as soon as I start watching them, I get bored and feel like turning it off. No, its not the content No, its not the genre No, its not the actors No, its not the taste either This is pretty ironic as considering the fact that I have spent a fair share of my youth chasing academics and career, my heart had always craved for life experiences. I had to let go of the woman I loved simply because I was too focussed on my JEE. I wont be able to forgive myself for that EVER. It almost felt like I had lost a limb, without which , I would be rendered disfunctional. Thats a separate story tho. Nothing excites me (yep nothing) Nothing amuses me Nothing feels lively I have no clue where my life is headed I understand that as we age, our triggers of happiness change. I have put concious efforts into knowing what those new triggers are. But I cant find any plausible sources of happiness. I am performing pretty well with my career. Even got a double digit hike. But didnt feel that kick of joy. Have I approached a dead end?

If you ask me, the purpose of life has to be more than climbing a self-constructed ladder. Like, it has to be more than a 3BHK in a metro, with two kids, a car and a prestigious job at a faceless corporation, 2 weeks of vacation and a movie on the weekend. Isn’t this weird that, we all continue to fool ourselves? When you know nothing matters the universe is yours, and I've never met a universe that was into it. The universe is an animal, it grazes on the ordinary. It creates infinite idiots just to eat them. You know? Smart people get a chance to climb on top and take reality for a ride but it'll never stop trying to throw you. And eventually it will, there's no other way off - Rick, Rick and Morty.

I can't seem to relate to much of the non-FAANG junta out there. I mean I have a cushy job with probably 0.1% pay of all SWEs(pretty much like all of us do). But these cookie-cutter roles have been taking a mental toll on me. Like I am getting paid but I feel a little purpose-less. What am I gunning for in this life? All my life I wanted to go to a good college to get into a good company. In college I wanted to get a good codeforces rank so that I could get into FAANG. Now that I am in FAANG I have nothing to look forward to. Any of you all feeling this way? Because I don't see myself offer-shopping and feeling much happy about that either.

Seen a couple of posts which tried to choose between a higher salary and an interesting job. I think finding meaning in your work goes further from the work becoming as interesting as a hobby. With a good pay and decent WLB you'll be able to make your life way more fulfilling. I've gotten into a couple of sports, gym often, socialise and travel around.

Hey All, I am writing this to express how I am feeling since last 1 year now. This post will be a bit lengthy but I would be grateful if anyone could help me even a bit. I moved into a new company 1year back and due to bad work environment I left. I took a months break and joined a new company now. I have a total 5 years of work experience, my salary is extremely good. ( I don’t worry about this at all for now) My problem is I don’t know what to do in my life. I guess I have quarter life crisis. Earlier I wanted to do music and act , I took professional classes and left because I felt bored idk why. I felt like I need someone to guide me and handhold me since I know no one in this industry. Talking about my job I have always moved into roles I loved every bit of work and I m very sincere and hardworking. I stopped working out , I stopped cycling, I stopped painting. I stopped liking everything literally. Idk how to get back at things. I feel I am gonna die anyway why I need to do this , or that or etc etc. I even took counselling but it did not seem yo help me. Idk what to do. Please share your experiences too and what I need to do.

Want to discuss if sabbatical being a taboo is valid and peoples opinions of it. I will start with mine Background - 8 years in tech 3 company switches Sabbatical of 1 month, 3 month and 6 month between each break. Personal experience - quite enriching. Though there was panic and anxiety of not having a job during the period, it truly helped me take a step back, reassess my career trajectory, and mostly just Destress and re prioritise Every now and then i loose my true love for tech and product and the sabbaticals helped me to rediscover that by just reading about technology that was not outcome driven ( like for switching a job) Quite rewarding each time in terms of salary jumps also. I think i was able to make a better case for myself at a particular position just because i had more time to process stuff from last job. It also helped me make better decisions for next thing which has in general helped me shape my career better ( i think atleast) Open to anyone sharing their stories/perspectives related to sabbaticals

Was thinking about our lives. Ever since you are in school, you have something to look forward to. When you’re in 1st grade, you know next year it’s 2nd grade and so on till you finish your undergrad. Suddenly, you could be everything or nothing at the same time. Those who are good at this game of eternal growth end up grinding their lives away in the PCM -> Engg -> B-School -> Consulting hell loop. Weirdly, the determinism in growth fades away suddenly and you see people finally pursuing diverse fields. Then, the realisation kicks in. You’ve been conditioned to chase eternal growth. That is what brings meaning to you in every part of your life. Today has to be better than your yesterday, or else it feels like you’ve failed. I wonder how sustainable that is but till then we will continue to throw our youth away. My 2 cents: You have a brief moment in history. Don’t spend your 10 years of prime in doing things that don’t bring you any joy. Don’t make the same mistakes all of us make chasing joys because others are chasing them. Find your own meaning to this eternal growth.