Mo Gawdat argues that Western culture treats purpose as future targets you chase endlessly, leaving you perpetually unsatisfied. Eastern philosophy gets it right: purpose lives in the present moment, not in some achievement you're always reaching for.
I think the definition of purpose as per the Western societies is very much commoditized. It's almost like a target. It's like I set the target in the future. I spend the next eight years pursuing it feeling frustrated and upset that I haven't achieved it. And then when I achieve it I have one of two choices either to set another target and feel upset for the next eight to nine years or to feel empty and feel that I'm purposeless. That's a very misleading view of purpose. Honestly. It's a very misleading view of the game of life in general. Right? Because the only point in life that you have access to is right now. So the Eastern philosophies will tell you no. That's how can you set your life around a future centric moment when life is here and now? How can you do that? Right? The only way you can actually live life is to live here and now. And so the definition of purpose becomes very different.
