Motivation, happiness and meaning comes from a whole host of things. We use different things and tell ourselves different stories that give us meaning and happiness.
But what happens when those get taken away from us? When the thing that you used to define yourself with doesn’t turn out to be what you thought it was, or when it disappears and it’s no more.
The problem here comes when our happiness and things that define us are extrinsic.
In order to avoid this, we need to reach a level of self-awareness where every decision and reaction makes sense. Were know the reason behind how we do things and react to them.
There are a thousand ways to achieve that but the best one is through meditation. Being able to sit in silence, listen to your thoughts and yourself is very important. You’re then able to see your thoughts as they happen, you’re fully aware of yourself and know why you do what you do.
Once we reach this level, we no longer need external factors to define us, we are self-aware and know how to be at peace and fulfilled from within.