The purpose in life, or why we have to keep moving forward

What is the purpose in life ?

I could have taken very different paths. If I had remained quietly on the marked path of my school studies in mathematics, I would be an engineer today. But I deviated from this destiny, and created my first web marketing company at 25 years old, a company I closed two years later. I then learned the trade of salesman, for which I proved to be very talented, to my own surprise. If I had stayed on the path of this career, I would now be in charge or perhaps even a sales manager in France. But my passion for business creation and adventure took over, and I left my homeland to start my web marketing business again in Prague, Czech Republic. I lived comfortably, alternating shopping sessions, busy evenings and a few hours of work a day. If I had stayed on this peaceful road to independence, I would be a hedonistic freelancer today. But my leadership had to express itself, and my hunger for adventure was not yet satisfied, so I left the northern hemisphere to settle in Madagascar. The Great Island of the Indian Ocean is a land of opportunities for those who know how to do it, an African-style far west.

And have you ever wondered what would have become of you if at some point you had made another decision ? And how do you feel when you think about it ?

There are also all the other paths that I haven’t touched on, but which, I must admit, have crossed my mind. I could have become a political activist, lead crowds, participate in the running of a country. I would not have disliked it, but contemporary politicians are above all careerists, having the interest of the people (for those who do have one…) relegated to the background. I could have become an outlaw, living outside the system, or at its expense, depending on how you look at it. A possibly short but fully lived life, surfing between the bumps, bends and unexpected obstacles of the black run of illegality. But in the end, this adrenaline and these intrigues, I also find them in entrepreneurship, so I might as well stay in « legality » and walk in peace on the street. At times, I also dream of being reclusive, in harmony with nature, refusing the rhythm of the unbridled growth imposed on us by the current capitalist system. From primary school we are taught to be efficient, to produce and to measure ourselves against our neighbour. I think it’s a shame. I think that education in Japan conveys other values, I should learn more about that one day.

And what do you think of the system in which we live ? Would you have wanted a radically different life ?

In the beginning, I wanted money. I didn’t have any and our society gives a lot of importance to those who do. So I fell into the trap : what I was doing was primarily to earn me francs, then euros, Czech crowns, ariary and more recently rupees and dollars. And then of course there is the fear of the situation, which I have unfortunately (or not ?) already experienced, of being in need. This fear is double-edged, on the one hand it prevents you from doing anything and finding yourself in a difficult situation, on the other hand it pushes you to seek immediate gains and accumulate more than what you need, to the detriment of both long-term development and others. I know people whose only goal in their professional life is to earn more and more money. I was one of them. It’s sad. Money has moved from being a development tool to being an end in itself. Today I am far from being rich, I am obviously not a millionaire, but I can usually get everything I need. Sometimes I walk around shopping malls without seeing a single object I want to acquire, whereas during my teenage years, these spaces were the source of all desires, and I thought to myself « if only I had the means ». Today I have them, but I realize that all these desires are futile and only mask the emptiness of our lives. What is important in life is to have a goal, and money is only one tool among many to achieve it.

Even if I think it will be controversial, I still ask you the question: what do you think about money ? When can we say we’ve had enough ? When can we say that someone has too much money ?

All these reflections lead us to the goal in life. That’s a difficult question. Some responded with religion, others drowned it in their daily routine. Do we have a purpose in life ? If so, what is it ? A life without a goal is nothing more than survival, you need a goal to really live. After many metaphysical tribulations and unanswered questions, I nevertheless came to a conclusion : if I don’t know if a goal has been divinely assigned to us, we must choose it ourselves, but be careful, not just anyhow. You must choose a goal that perfectly matches your personality. So if you are a little lost in life and you don’t know what to do, start by getting to know yourself, and this is only done through experiences, trials and encounters. It is very difficult to fight against its nature, so choose a goal that works in your direction. Better yet, if you have a passion, find a goal that involves it. If you choose a goal that does not suit you, you will be eternally bitter, frustrated, complexed, envious and unhappy in life, no matter how much money you can earn. Let’s go a little further and notice that our personality is the result of several factors: our genes, the chemical reactions of our brain, our education, our experiences, our environment, our surroundings, our body, etc. However, if your goal in life must be defined according to your personality, it is finally defined according to these same factors, in other words in two words « your life ». You have to live to have a purpose and have a purpose to live. So until you have determined your purpose in life, keep moving forward, it will come.

And do you have a purpose in life ? What is it ? What is it ? Was it difficult to find him ? Or maybe you think that there is no purpose in life and that it is enough to live one day after the other ?

Finally, I will share with you the goal I « chose » for my life, which makes me get up in the morning and gives me the courage to overcome all the difficulties that arise before me, which is why I keep moving forward. I’ve been a hard worker since I was a kid. In primary, middle and high school, I was already taking all the optional courses and activities : theatre, European class, Greek, Chinese, German, etc. Then I did math sup / math spé, my brain has never been so busy. Actually, I don’t even consider myself working. I use that term when people ask me what I do. But I don’t work, I do what I have to do and I like it. I do it from morning to night, from Monday to Sunday, and even today, Easter Monday. I use the word « work » because these activities allow me to earn a living. So everything that is a goal such as « taking early retirement and taking cruises » or « working less to take care of a family » is already dead. I am a leader and I am collective, so I need a goal that involves a team, I don’t want to become a « hedonistic independent » again, even if sometimes the desire to slap everything away and go back to my duplex in Prague can resurface :-p. I like to create companies, imagine new products, understand and solve my clients’ needs, find solutions to the most unexpected problems, create entities that one day can function without me, so that they can survive me. I think it is very important to share in life and helping others is already a great achievement in itself. That’s why I launched https://stileex.xyz in February 2015. It was just a blog to share my sales techniques with anyone who needed them, without asking for anything in return, to help. And today, I have a whole team working with me to achieve this objective : to share our passions with our readers and help them achieve their objectives. I share mathematics courses and I want to resume mathematical research. I regularly have this dream where I am still in the industry, as if I still have to complete something there. Perhaps one day I will discover an important theorem ! Who knows.

Despite everything that can happen, I will continue to create activities, have an impact on my environment and lead my comrades who wish to follow me, I will never abandon them. I wish my creations would survive me. That’s the goal of my life. https://stileex.xyz will be the Ariadne’s thread.

See also → Freebe, a billing software, but not only !