It is common for us to feel we do not have purpose. This is a dreadful and empty feeling when time is marching on, one day to the next, to no meaningful end. But what exactly would give us purpose in the first place? I find it helpful to look at this as a three-part framework. <video src="https://cdn.everything.io/adamgrant.info/Adam%20TikTok%20Video.mp4" controls></video> # Conflict **The belief that something needs to be made right** A conflict can be a personal endeavor to improve one's health or learn a new skill. The conflict could also be external, such as the need to raise our children. Just as every good story has conflict, the story of what makes a moment matter needs it to. You cannot have a journey if there is no destination. # Hope **The belief that I am able and ready to make it right** Having conflict alone can make us feel helpless or even oppressed if we do not believe we have any agency in doing something about it. If we want to learn a new language and believe that we have the time and resources to do it, that can be enough to make us believe we are able and ready to right the conflict of not speaking that language. Having what we need and dedicating our time to taking care of our children can give us hope that we can solve the conflict of ensuring they have a bright future. # Engagement **The belief that I am on a journey to make it right** If we believe we are able and ready to make something right but we are not doing anything about it, this can make us feel guilt and shame. If we believe that we are on that journey but we don't believe that we are truly able to bring about that change, it brings down our morale and the entire effort feels pointless. This is why all three parts of the triangle must coexist for us to feel we have purpose. This is the beginning, not the end of the story of course. It describes the work we all have in front of us to build a life of purpose for ourselves. Personally, I find this paradoxically fulfilling to know when I am in a state of feeling I don't have purpose because I know what I need to look for, even if I haven't found it yet. You may feel like me, that that is your conflict—finding a conflict that instills you with a sense of hope that you can do something about it enough so that you actually do. ![[Partials#^eaec46]]