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Kylie McCool
Ms. Jizi
UWRT-1104-015
28 September 2016
Meaningful Life Essay
In order to have a meaningful life, I believe that I need to be well rounded in all aspects.
To ensure that I follow my own ideology in the future, I must set for myself a guide that will
improve me holistically. A good guide to base my life around is the PERMA model. The PERMA
model focuses on five positive elements, positive emotion, engagement, positive relationships,
meaning and accomplishments or achievements. I can attain these elements by actively reflecting
upon myself to see if I am following its guidelines. All five of these elements would attribute to
me being a well rounded individual while also focusing on my personal strengths. My personal
strengths that make me who I am today is my capacity to love and be loved, my ability to be
honest, show kindness and generosity, appreciate beauty, and exhibit modesty and humility at all
times. These strong attributes of mine will follow me throughout my life, which is why it is
important for me to incorporate them into my plans for a meaningful future. If I am going to find
meaning in my life, I need to surround myself with positive people that empower me
emotionally. As someone who has a lot of love to offer, I greatly value important and close
relations with the people in my life. I plan on having positive relationships with my friends,
family and significant other by exhibiting my ability to show kindness and generosity. I can show
my kindness in my personal relationship by being that rock for them and focusing on their
feelings and needs. Being generous means setting aside time in my busy schedule to show how
much I care for the people I love. I can set aside time to help out my parents in their old age and

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set aside time to grow a strong emotional bond with my future spouse. I will also be able to show
these traits in my line of work. I hope to eventually become a therapist or psychologist. Working
with the mentally ill requires me to constantly show compassion and kindness. By showing love
to my patients, I can be that guiding light for them and help them work through their problems.
By doing these things my life will find meaning through positive emotions and relationships. I
will also find significance in my life through my future career in either hospice or social work.
Doing either career will make me feel good, as doing a job that serves and benefits others will
help me find meaning and feel accomplished. I think it is important to have a career that you a
passion rather than one that makes you a lot of money. This idea of not chasing wealth goes back
to my ability to have modesty and appreciate the beauty in living a simple life. I believe that the
pursuit of wealth often leads to people being unhappy and greedy, which is why I want to do
something that will change the lives of someone else rather than myself. I think that doing
honorable work like hospice or social work will make me feel accomplished, as I know that
every hour spent at work is for a good cause. Another way a will find meaning in my life is by
being engaged in all the world has to offer. By having a life that is full of new and refreshing
experiences, I will be able to appreciate the little things and feel genuine to my own passions. I
will be able to do this be exploring and learning new things. By being honest with myself about
my passion for nature and culture I will be more willing to venture out and see new things. I
would love to be able to travel to Europe one day. There is such diverse and unique cultures
clustered together on that beautiful continent. Being completely involved and engaged in life
makes life worth living. Life is never worthwhile if you are always viewing it from the sidelines
and letting opportunities pass you by. Everyone has a different idea about what will given them a

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meaningful life, as for me I believe that by being well rounded in multiple aspects while focusing
on my character strengths, I will be able to live a life that has value and meaning to me.