Everyone strives from a very early age to find and live "the good life," but when asked to define it, most can't. So if it can not be defined, how do you know if you've found it or what your goals should be?
So first thing's first... what is it? It's going to be different for everyone, but if this thread develops a good conversation, we'll start to see that the details will be different but the core might be surprisingly similar. That's the key to the question... the core. What's at our core and what do we do to take care of it?
I'm throwing a couple different thoughts out because I don't want this to be tightly structured. I just want people to truly think about where they are, how they got there, where they want to be, and WHY WHY WHY.
So, what is the good life to you?????? Money? God? Family? Sex? Power? Peace? Structure? Safety? Love? Success? Attainment? Friends? Popularity? Solitary?
Think and have fun with it. Let's see if we can learn from each other.
I've been told I need to add in some of my own thoughts on what makes the good life. Some of the posts below really strike to what I personally think makes up living well. Abaya and Katyanna both hit a theme that I believe in, and that's simplicity. My whole life I've taken pride in being complex and in striving for achievement, or status, or things that wrap around pride. But with help from a class on this subject and by reading thinkers ideas on this, I've come to the conclussion that the simpler your life is the happier or more content you'll be. If you think about the primal man, he didn't worry about the future and never dwelled on the past. When he was hungry, he ate, and when it rained he found shelter. His daily life wasn't cluttered with worry, jealousy, self-doubt, and stress. He lived the simplest and most contented life, because he didn't know better. Each advance in technology and thinking has brought with it pressure, judgement, and a monetary cost to achieve and have everything society says we should. Our bodies and our minds are weaker than they've ever been, and yet we think we're far superior to that primitive man. I question our superiority. Our daily lives are mostly filled now with jobs to make money to pay bills. These jobs define us and carry untold pressures. The cars, houses, trips, gadgits, clothes, etc we all think we need to be "happy" in the end only bring more work, bills, and stress. We always want the next thing and are always worried about the future instead of living in the moment and living simply. A great thinker said something to the effect that we spend so much energy worrying about things that aren't real or are over(future and past) that we never actually possess what we truly have which is the here and now. So if we're always worried and planning for the future and realize we're never satisfied then we will never truly be happy and content. The long, long, long story short is my opinion of living well is living in the moment and living as simply as possible giving all of your energy to yourself and your loved ones. Now, this is way easier said than done.