This is a guide covering what you should remember when feeling lost in life.
We’ll be covering the following topics (click on a bullet point to jump to that section):
What is the Meaning of Feeling Lost?
Feeling lost has been defined as a general sense of purposelessness. If you are drifting through life aimlessly, or if you feel that you are going nowhere and stuck in a rut, you might be feeling lost.
It is an existential crisis that can be extremely overwhelming.
A person who feels lost in life generally defines their situation as that of an existential void, where anything and everything seems meaningless.
Some people have their life figured out from the get-go, but others suffer through life with a sense of feeling lost in life. You have either been through a tragedy that has upturned your life or you find yourself drifting through life with no specific goal.
Feeling lost is a real outcome of factors within and outside of our control. Everybody should have a purpose-driven life, but drifting far away at sea, our life’s boat has lost its true north.
There are a few things that you can have as reminders that can help set you back on track.
Feeling lost is normal because life doesn’t promise us anything, and sometimes even the best-laid plans can derail.
In testing times, it is good to remind yourself of the things that can help you stay centered and pointing towards your true north.
At the heart of the matter of feeling lost is having no purpose in life or losing it due to unforeseen events or circumstances.
Our purpose in life is our key to happiness and fulfillment. Therefore, if we lost our purpose or identity, it can cause serious damage to our mental wellbeing.
The crisis of identity caused by some unrelated event also is part of the experience. Our professional career is a domain that we normally get wrong.
We pursue that which pays good but doesn’t fulfill us. We paint ourselves ever deeper into a corner, realizing only later that we are stuck in a rut.
The symptoms of feeling lost manifest themselves in the form of depression and anxiety over the future.
Add to that the constant bombardment of unrealistic social media standards of success, the modern generation is bound to suffer episodes of depression, unfulfillment, and sadness.
So what can you do about it?
What Should You Do When You’re Lost?
If you are feeling lost, you need to step back, evaluate your life objectively, and let go of the things that are making you feel stuck.
If it’s your job, a relationship, a habit, or anything else that is holding you back from realizing your potential, you need to let go right now.
If purposelessness is causing you to feel lost then you need to find your purpose.
But that’s often easier said than done. Most people choose what they are passionate about after they hit an existential brick wall in their life that wakes them up.
Another reason why people feel lost is due to their focus on the outcome instead of the process.
The process could be as rewarding as the outcome, but in a bid to instantly gratify our desires, we want to reach our goals as fast as possible.
So when obstacles rear their ugly head, as they so often do in life, we tend to give up at the first sign of trouble.
In process-oriented thinking, we are intrinsically motivated to pursue what we desire.
Finding happiness in the process is the best way to stave off the feelings of drifting through life.
15 Things You Should Remember When Feeling Lost in Life
Here are 15 things you can do when you feel lost in life.
1. It’s Just a Phase
Remember, nothing in life is permanent.
The rough patch we are going through may not even last a week, but we feel that it might consume our mental health.
It’s important to remind yourself that nothing lasts forever, and that will give you the time and mental space to think more rationally and ease your burden.
2. Feeling Lost also Means You’re Open to Opportunities
Sometimes what you need is a change of perspective.
Feeling lost could mean that you have outgrown your current situation and because you have evolved as a person, you need to find newer opportunities whether they be in business, career, or relationships.
It’s that fundamental shift in perspective that can reorient your depressive thinking into a mindset that accepts and welcomes change.
3. Focus on the Present
The feelings that you are going through might wash over the next day.
Outcome-based thinking can overwhelm us, especially if we think that what we have to achieve is beyond our capabilities.
As the saying goes, “a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step”, you need to focus on putting one step in front of the other and keep going.
Focus on the process of improving, learning, and progressing through life instead of conjuring up dreams and fantasies without taking into account what entails achieving them.
4. Reflect
“A ship without a harbor is lost at sea”
If you are feeling lost for a while, maybe it is better to step back from the humdrum of life and evaluate your choices and goals.
Do you know where you are going? What actions are congruent to your goals and which are not?
Asking yourselves questions like these can get you unstuck and peddling towards your desired harbor in no time.
If you are the captain of your life’s ship, you should take charge in commandeering it safely to the shore.
5. Don’t Think, Do
Paralysis by analysis has become extremely common in today’s age of abundant and readily available information.
But, humans learn by actually doing. They feel fulfilled by actually doing the things they set out to do.
Instead of getting bogged in overthinking your next move, why not take that leap of faith and actually take on that new project at the office, ask that person out, and show up at the gym after resolving that you would for the millionth time.
If you started doing things that wanted to do, you wouldn’t feel so lost after a while.
6. Account For Your Time
Successful people are good at accounting for their time.
We all get 24 hours in a day, but we use that allotted time differently, leading to different results.
Benjamin Franklin developed a habit of accountability early in life. He would ask himself, “what good can I do today?” upon rising, and at night, before going to sleep, he would ask, “what good have I done today?”
How you use your time during your waking hours determines the quality of the life you can achieve.
7. Avoid the Victim Mentality
Adopting a victim mentality instead of a resilient and growth-focused mentality can exacerbate feelings of purposelessness.
You are more likely to wallow in your misery thinking the world is against you and neglect your own role in shaping your future.
True healing begins with overpowering the victim mentality with something more positive.
Instead of dwelling on the negativity, we should focus on what can be done right now that can improve my life.
8. Recognize Your Strengths
Everyone has their own flaws and strengths. When we feel lost, losing sight of our overall character and personality can give us a lopsided view of ourselves.
Our self-esteem suffers as a result of such inaccurate self-depictions.
It is important that we recognize that we are okay the way we are and that we are also endowed with certain strengths.
9. Take the Time Off
Taking the time off and going on a vacation is like hitting the refresh for your mind.
Going on a vacation can increase your productivity. If you feel like you are drudging corporate cog, punching in day-in and day-out without stop, it is inevitable you will feel that your life has no meaning.
Take the time off, think things over, enjoy life, be close to nature to rejuvenate your soul, and come back fresh.
10. Exercise
Exercise has tons of benefits for your cognition, physical health, and mood.
A moderate to high-intensity workout can stave off depression and keep you cognitively functioning well into your later life.
The sense of accomplishment alone after a good workout can help you realize that your life is not all gone to the dogs.
If you have even one thing in life going for you, it can set you on the right path because good habits lead to other good habits.
11. Diet
Exercise naturally leads to good food choices.
A good diet also has tons of benefits for weight loss, emotional well-being, and cognition.
Feeling lost can be due to a variety of causes, but taking care of your emotional health and cognition is vitally significant to take back the charge of your life.
12. Read
There is tons of material out there on self-development.
Successful people have written their blueprints to success and how they found their purpose.
Reading is a great way to expand your knowledge, develop your personality, and unstuck your life.
A book is a great guide to help you find your calling if you are feeling lost.
13. You Don’t Have to Find Your Way on Your Own
Sometimes it is better to ask for help from a friend or a close loved one who understands us and is willing to lend us their attention.
We can vent, complain, and ask them anything. Their attention is without judgment, without strings, and empathetic.
Having a support system can be like a safety net that ensures that even if we are lost, we can find our way back.
14. Growth is Part of the Journey
Feeling lost means that you are on a journey of self-discovery that may not always look familiar, but it will lead you to find your true purpose.
So take heart in the fact that you are lost, maybe it is your chance to find your own self.
15. We Are All Ignorant About Life
Knowing that none of us have life figured out is a liberating thought because it means that our misery is not special, and we can safely pull that cocoon of victimhood away and face life one challenge at a time.
Many philosophers and thinkers have come and gone grappling with the most basic questions, such as the meaning of life, but no one can say for sure that they have the answer.
In fact, everyone makes their own destiny so one person’s answer will not apply to another.
Final Remarks
When you realize that feeling lost in life is not a permanent state, but it will pass away with a little introspection, discipline, and reading. Just put one foot in front of the other and maybe you will start to feel and think a little clearer after some time.
Don’t play the victim, that will only serve to entrench the feeling. Enjoy the process of discovering yourself and your purpose.
Sikandar is opinionated on a diverse set of topics that include, but are not limited to, Productivity, Health, Fitness, Motivation, and Career. He is in love with the written word and writes mainly to help others on their self-actualizing journeys. A journalist by education, getting to the bottom of things is his modus operandi. Often, he finds himself moonlighting as a life coach to his family, friends, and colleagues. He can be reached at his LinkedIn for collaboration.