Finding the way to live a meaningful life: Reflection and Expectation of life “What is a meaningful life?” This is the question that was asked to myself during the spring semester of my freshman year. More than studying hard and making academic achievement, it was important to find the final goal of my life since the living without destination will soon lead to voidness of life. Taking the philosophy and theology courses, I could find the way to live a meaningful life. My stating the personal mission statement, I would like to how I will pursue a meaningful life during the rest of the years in Notre Dame. The mission statement starts identifying myself. I am a Notre Dame student studying in Mendoza College of Business as Business Analytics major. When I came to Notre Dame, the goal of myself is to serve for the agricultural community in Korea. The farmers in Korea was suffering from the monopolization of distribution companies, and my ultimate goal is to organize a company that provides reasonable price to the farmers, preventing them from getting bankrupted. As Rev. John Jenkins said in The Hesburgh Film, “Ted was a bridge-builder between people and god and among people” when he was commenting about Fr. Hesburgh’s life, my goal was also being such a figure, serving for the people who are suffering under the unfair system. As stated in mission statement of Notre Dame “The aim is to create a sense of human solidarity and concern for the common good that will bear fruit as learning becomes service to justice,” I decided to come to the school to pursue my goal. I believe that the meaningful life is a doing what I truly enjoy and finding good in that. The good is not personal or instrumental good, but it is a final good that benefits the entire society. Fr. Michael Hime’s article “Three Key Questions” states “The most important thing you can do in your life is to come to a point where you can say that, “this is a genuine me!”” In the article, Fr. Himes gives the three questions “what gives you joy?”, “what are you really good at?”, and “what do the people around you really need?” Answering these three questions, I realized that the well-lived life is a comes from doing what I enjoy and making good relationships. To find the way toward the meaningful life, I found the career that gives me joy is in the field of consulting. In finding the career that fits me the best, I first reminded myself that God loves everyone, and therefore He has a grand plan for everyone. In the article, Growing up Gay and Catholic, Jacob Walsh states a comment from a priest that “God doesn’t make shit,” I realized that God made us for a purpose and it is important to identify the purpose. Then, how should I apply my acknowledgement of the meaningful life in to real world? First, as a college student, I think it is important to seek the career that I can find joy. As stated in Navigating Your Career Journey – Meruelo Family Center for Career Development state “The only way to know more about yourself is to test the waters – just get our and experience life,” life is a journey to find myself and there is no answer in life and career. Reminding this fact, I should find a career that I can truly do well and enjoy. Before find the career, I should know who I am. Meditation is a good way for self reflection. However, the way of meditating is important. According to Tasha Eurich, “If you ask why, [I think] you’re putting yourself into a victim mentality..” The meditation should be continuously focus on what kind of person I am, not why I am such kind of person. Then, I need to passionately work to get the career. To get the career, I need to be aware of various temptations such as usage of electronic devices. Today, the greatest threat is the smartphone and computer addiction. In the article “Why we need to slow down our lives,” Pico Lyer says “I have encountered has beent aht the people who seem wisest about the necessity of placing limits on the newest technologies, which have bulldozed over so many of the limits of old.” The addiction and the side effect of the excessive about of information provides by the electric devices, I should limit myself of uses such devices. Besides the career, I should also form good relationships. Since humanity are social animals, it is impossible to live without interactions with others. The good relationships provides the most effective way for the self-reflection. During the Discrement Conversation Activity for the Moreau Week Five, I asked my friend to answer for the questions about what he thinks about things that I value the most. Through the conversation I could recognize about values of me that I was not able to realize. To form a healthy relationship, first it is important to avoid the echo chamber and listen to other’s comments. According to Dr. Paul Blaschko, in the video “How to Avoid an Echo Chamber,” echo chamber is a social structure from which relevant voices have been actively discredited. This is a great threat in active thinking and forming relationships, since the prejudice is formed by the echo chamber, and it dominated our way of thinking. Pope Fancis also emphasizes the need of being open-minded. He says “we can only build the future by standing together, including everyone.” Genuine relationship is a relationship containing freedom of speech, and we can make them only through open-minded mindset. In the essay “Teaching Accompaniment: A learning Journey Together,” Steve Reifenberg talks about his volunteer work in Santiago, Chile. He meets people who shows the value of accompanying. People of Domingo Savio didn’t support the author based on generosity. They just accompanied because they had to, without any other reasonings. The author later adds on the explanation of accompaniment. “Accompaniment is, in some ways, like teaching. It is a practice. By being aware of what you’re trying to do, engaging in it, reflecting on experiences of it – both accompanying and being accompanied – you get better.” Therefore relationships and accompaniment makes better life and personality. Through the course, I learned about what is a meaningful life, and how should I pursue such life. As Dean G. Marcus Cole said “I am George Floyd. Except, I can breathe. And I can do something” about the black rights movement, the ultimate goal of the meaningful life is not doing for our own good, but it should be for the society, for the humanity. Therefore to live a meaningful life, I need to find a career that provides me joy and moreover that could serve for the society. Citations “Why we need to slow down our lives” by Pico Lyer – Moreau Week 1 “Hesburgh” by Jerry Barca and Christine O’Malley – Moreau Week 2 “Three Key Questions” by Fr. Michael Himes – Moreau Week 3 “Navigating Your Career Journey” by Meruelo Family Center for Career Development – Moreau Week 4 Discernment Conversation Activity – Moreau Week 5 “The right way to be introspective” by Tasha Eurich – Moreau Week 6 “Why the only future worth. Building includes everyone” by Pope Francis – Moreau Week 7 “Teaching Accompaniment: A learning Journey Together” by Steve Reifenberg – Moreau Week 9 “Growing up Gay and Catholic” by Jacob Walsh – Moreau Week 10 “How to Avoid an Echo Chamber” by Dr. Paul Blaschko – Moreau Week 11 “I am a George Floyd. Except, I can breathe. And I can do something” by Dean G. Marcus Cole – Moreau Week 12 University of Notre Dame Mission Statement by University of Notre Dame – Moreau Week 13 https://ideas.ted.com/why-we-need-a-secular-sabbath/ https://notredame.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=10159379-7eca-4549-8581-ab9500c9ecd9 https://undergradcareers.nd.edu/navigating-your-career-journey---moreau/ https://ideas.ted.com/the-right-way-to-be-introspective-yes-theres-a-wrong-way/ https://www.ted.com/talks/his_holiness_pope_francis_why_the_only_future_worth_building_includes_everyone/transcript https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hZbSdVImfn2hZDqMrdL96dZCNOtHuf6C-lg3sH-Rs30/edit https://grottonetwork.com/keep-the-faith/community/reflective-narrative-about-being-gay-and-catholic/?utm_source=moreau&utm_medium=class&utm_campaign=spring_2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaIVxQcqnLs&t=1s&ab_channel=ThinkND https://law.nd.edu/news-events/news/dean-g-marcus-cole-i-am-george-floyd-except-i-can-breathe-and-i-can-do-something/ https://www.nd.edu/about/mission/