--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Life has meaning only if you do what is…" description: "\"Life has meaning only if you do what is meaningful to you.\" — Alan Cohen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/708/alan-cohen-1112_ifs_life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is_1056330.png" --- # Life has meaning only if you do what is meaningful to you. ![“Life has meaning only if you do what is meaningful to you.” quote by Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/708/alan-cohen-1112_ifs_life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is_1056330.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/708/alan-cohen-1112_ifs_life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is_1056330.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/708/alan-cohen-1112_ifs_life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is_1056330.png) > “Life has meaning only if you do what is meaningful to you.” [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Meaning arises when you pursue what you personally find meaningful, not external expectations. **In simple terms:** Life is meaningful when you follow your own purpose. Key Takeaway Align actions with personal purpose. Themes purpose meaning self‑direction Mood inspirational motivational Type philosophical personal encouraging When to use this quote - career choice - personal projects - volunteering - creative pursuits Key Concepts authenticity existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What activities feel truly meaningful to you? - How do you differentiate between societal and personal meaning? A Different Perspective External pressures can distract from personal meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life meaning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-meaning/) [Meaning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaning/) [Meaningful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaningful/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Purpose of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose-of-life/) ## Related quotes > [“Life Has Two (2) Meaning -Meaningful & -Meaningless what is mine? Your's is up to you..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bataller/life-has-two-2-meaning-meaningful-meaningless-what-is-mine-your-s-is/) Billy Bataller > [I'll never do something because it's available, I'll always do something that has meaning towards it or is meaningful to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-greenwood/i-ll-never-do-something-because-it-s-available-i-ll-always-do/) [Alex Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-greenwood/) > [Living is the purpose of life, And meaning can be found therein. I finds thou. Thou becomes it. And it begins again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-kesey/living-is-the-purpose-of-life-and-meaning-can-be-found-therein-i/) [Ken Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-kesey/) > [“The true meaning and purpose of life is to give some meaning and purpose to your life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/the-true-meaning-and-purpose-of-life-is-to-give-some-meaning-and/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [“Life has the meaning we give it, no more, no less.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/life-has-the-meaning-we-give-it-no-more-no-less/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [Life has meaning for anyone who takes an interest in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/life-has-meaning-for-anyone-who-takes-an-interest-in-it/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [What do I know about God and the purpose of life? I know that this world exists. 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If you want a meaning in your life, find a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/t-here-is-nothing-to-say-about-life-it-has-no-meaning-you-make/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Instead of the traditional emphasis on the sanctity of life, bioethics began to stress the quality of life, meaning that many damaged humans, young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-leo/instead-of-the-traditional-emphasis-on-the-sanctity-of-life-bioethics/) [John Leo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-leo/) > [You are free to give life meaning, whatever meaning you want to give it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fulghum/you-are-free-to-give-life-meaning-whatever-meaning-you-want-to-give-it/) [Robert Fulghum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fulghum/) > [Life has no meaning. Each of us has meaning and we bring it to life. We are the only answer of meaning of life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikas-runwal/life-has-no-meaning-each-of-us-has-meaning-and-we-bring-it-to-life-we/) [Vikas Runwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikas-runwal/) ## More by Alan Cohen > [When you protect yourself from pain, be sure you do not protect yourself from love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/when-you-protect-yourself-from-pain-be-sure-you-do-not-protect/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [Anyone in a state of seeking can never be happy. Only those who are constantly finding are fulfilled. And finding is not something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/anyone-in-a-state-of-seeking-can-never-be-happy-only-those-who-are/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [“You cannot be other than you are. Thank God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/you-cannot-be-other-than-you-are-thank-god/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [Evaluate every act by whether it brings you greater life, or deadens you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/evaluate-every-act-by-whether-it-brings-you-greater-life-or-deadens/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [Put aside ambition for public recognition, and simply do what you do because it feels good inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/put-aside-ambition-for-public-recognition-and-simply-do-what-you-do/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [“When you finally give up striving, you will be left with what you have been striving for.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/when-you-finally-give-up-striving-you-will-be-left-with-what-you-have/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [“newspaper ads for lost pets and earthquakes that soon follow. 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Every challenge, great or small, is moving you to look deeper and draw forth the highest in you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/turmoil-is-a-call-for-awakening-every-challenge-great-or-small-is/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [The difficulties of life do not keep you from greatness. They show you to its door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/the-difficulties-of-life-do-not-keep-you-from-greatness-they-show-you/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [What a doctor or healer tells you is a reflection of the beliefs and expectations you hold. Change your beliefs and you change the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/what-a-doctor-or-healer-tells-you-is-a-reflection-of-the-beliefs-and/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [Quit planning your dream and start living it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/quit-planning-your-dream-and-start-living-it/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [The more you invest in your happiness, the more happiness will invest in you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/the-more-you-invest-in-your-happiness-the-more-happiness-will-invest/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [Joy is the wild card of life; it supersedes every other formula for success. If you can find a way to create joy, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/joy-is-the-wild-card-of-life-it-supersedes-every-other-formula-for/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) [Explore all 290 Alan Cohen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) ## More Ifs quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [Obviously, if you don't love life, you can't enjoy an oyster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-clark/obviously-if-you-don-t-love-life-you-can-t-enjoy-an-oyster/) [Eleanor Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-clark/) > [If I don't have pressure, I don't function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferran-adria/if-i-don-t-have-pressure-i-don-t-function/) [Ferran Adria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferran-adria/) > [If you restore a car, and you're making money, then you're doing it wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/if-you-restore-a-car-and-you-re-making-money-then-you-re-doing-it/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [If we gave up our freedom as the price of security, we would no longer be the great nation that we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/if-we-gave-up-our-freedom-as-the-price-of-security-we-would-no-longer/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/) [Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/) > [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) Browse all 94,303 Ifs quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Life has meaning only if you do what is meaningful to you.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alan Cohen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is-meaningful-to-you/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ifs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is-meaningful-to-you/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/708/alan-cohen-1112_ifs_life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is_1056330.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/708/alan-cohen-1112_ifs_life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is_1056330.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/708/alan-cohen-1112_ifs_life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is_1056330.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Life has meaning only if you do what is meaningful to you.” — Alan Cohen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alan Cohen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Life has meaning only if you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is-meaningful-to-you/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/life-has-meaning-only-if-you-do-what-is-meaningful-to-you/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```