I would like to organize a framework for thinking about life. Note that in this context, the term “life perspective” includes the concept of self-image.
Life is something that we experience along the flow of time. Concepts that involve temporal changes can be captured as systems that have interactions between components.
Thus, I’ll organize a framework of life by modeling the interactions between the components involved in life.
Components of Life’s Framework
I believe life can roughly be seen as an interaction between two main components: the “world” and “me.”
I would like to further dissect “me”. How elements are prioritized can vary from person to person, so there are various ways to divide this. Here, I am using my personal division: free will, life perspective, worldview, and abilities.
Also, it would be possible to decompose and organize “world” as well, but I’ll leave it as is here. It’s my personal judgment that it’s more important to break down “me” than to think about breaking down the world.
Below, I will list and briefly explain each component.
a) World:
The world has a significant impact on my life. However, it is external to me and I cannot directly control or manipulate it. Still, I can influence the things and people close to me, even if I cannot directly control them.
b) My Free Will:
This is a special ability to freely decide my actions. I can make choices about my life, the things and people around me in the world, and my abilities.
c) My Life Perspective:
This is my understanding of life, which I use as a criterion for making choices with my free will. This includes philosophical matters such as what is happiness, what is death, and how should one live. Also included are my personal preferences, such as what are my dreams or goals, and what do I like.
d) My Worldview:
This is my understanding of the world, which I use as a criterion for making choices with my free will. It includes my understanding of the things and people around me.
e) My Abilities:
My abilities can expand the range of options available to my free will and make it easier to achieve the results I intend with my free will. It is possible to develop my abilities. What actions I take to grow my abilities can also be decided by my free will. As a result, how my abilities grow is influenced by my foundational abilities and the world. I can also train my foundational abilities, but some abilities may be limited by factors such as talent and physical characteristics. The ability to construct or change my worldview and life perspective is also a type of my ability. My possessions and the rights I can exercise are also a type of my ability.
Interaction Between Components
My life is determined as a result of making choices based on my free will, using my abilities in the world.
The influence of the world is significant, but it alone does not determine my life. The results of choices made by my free will also have a significant impact on my life.
Also, if my abilities are high, the options available to my free will increase, and it becomes easier for my free will to bring about the results I intend.
However, if my worldview greatly deviates from the actual laws and reactions of the world, no matter how great my abilities are, the results will only differ from the intentions of my free will.
For example, if you’re doing something the wrong way, no matter how much time you spend studying or practicing, it will be hard to learn or improve. If you don’t understand what is expected of you, your work or love life won’t go well. If you don’t understand how to calculate or respond, you won’t be able to avoid loss or harm.
On the other hand, if my life perspective greatly deviates from what I desire, no matter how great my abilities and refined my worldview, it will be difficult to find satisfaction in the results of the choices made by my free will, and I may feel a sense of emptiness or discomfort even when I have achieved what I intended.
In short, this applies to situations where you believe in a life perspective as told by others, or accept the happiness theory as it is said in the world. You could also say it’s a state where you haven’t fully digested until you are satisfied within yourself.
For example, getting into a good school, getting a job with a high income, driving a luxury car, and dressing in the latest fashion. If that’s what you really aimed for, you might be satisfied. On the other hand, if you just confuse the values taught by adults around you or society with your life perspective, you might feel empty when you achieve them.
Of course, this varies from person to person. Some people might realize they wanted to do a bigger job after choosing a mundane, stable job, and others might realize they were interested in cutting-edge fashion even though they were dressing modestly.
Even if you thought you had thought carefully beforehand, you might feel different once you’re in that state. You can’t predict your future self, or how you’ll feel when you’ve actually achieved your goals. Therefore, in the framework of life, the life perspective is the most difficult part.
No matter how difficult it is, I believe that continuing to think deeply about this life perspective is ultimately about thinking about life. If you feel emptiness when you achieve or obtain something big, I believe you should return to your life perspective. Otherwise, you will try to get bigger things, your desires will never end, and no matter how big things you get, you will never be satisfied. Eventually, you will face the limits of your talent and abilities, and you will feel self-hatred and despair for not being able to achieve bigger things.
In Conclusion
As explained along the way, the framework of life can be modeled in various ways depending on the person. The framework can change depending on what model you imagine, and it can greatly influence a person’s approach and thinking about life.
The framework written in this article is a model of life that I decomposed from my personal perspective. If there are parts that differ from your image when referencing this model, you can modify, add, or delete those parts to create a different model.
Also, by using this model as it is, or using the modified model, and thinking about how each component works and what properties it has while organizing it, I believe you can deepen your thinking about life.
