Sunny Hansen: Building a Meaningful Life
I'm always struck when it feels like there is a common thread running through the conversations I'm having across the different domains of my life. While there are times when I'll chalk it up to coincidence, there are others when it feels like something more is going on—something that deserves my curiosity and attention.
It could be that, for many of us, the summer months bring a different rhythm to life: a rhythm that feels less driven by accomplishing the things on our ever-present "to do" lists and better suited to pausing, reflecting, and noticing what may be stirring beneath the surface. One of those things, at least in my orbit, has been contemplating what it means to live a meaningful life and how our work—or, perhaps more broadly, our vocation—fits into that.
Over the next several newsletters, we'll be sharing a framework developed by psychologist and career counseling researcher Dr. Sunny Hansen and her colleagues that seeks to take a holistic approach to "planning one's life course." While career counseling often focuses on choosing a job or advancing one's career, Hansen’s Integrative Life Planning identifies six critical life tasks that help people think more broadly about building a meaningful life.
The first task Hansen identifies is finding work that needs doing in changing global contexts. Admittedly, that's not the most accessible phrase. Yet beneath the academic language is a surprisingly practical and timely question: What does the world need, and how might my gifts, experiences, and values help meet those needs?
Traditionally, most of us have been encouraged to think about work by asking questions like, What am I good at? or What do I enjoy doing? Hansen invites us not only to ask these questions but also to ask, "What does the world need?" From my own faith tradition, Christians have long held these questions together. As the apostle Peter writes, "Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received." Our gifts are deeply personal, yet they are never merely private—they are entrusted to us for the flourishing of others. Our discernment on our life’s course, therefore, might include exploring the teachings from our faith traditions for guidance.
While it can feel like there is much change afoot in our different contexts, the questions prompted by Hansen’s research continue to ring true: What are the needs in our communities? What challenges are emerging in our workplaces, neighborhoods, schools, and congregations? What changes are taking place in the wider world that call for new ways of serving, creating, leading, or caring for others?
This certainly isn’t to say that we are responsible for solving every problem we encounter. Rather, it asks us to cultivate the habit of paying attention. Hansen’s theory is rooted in the belief that meaningful work emerges where our personal story intersects with the needs of the world. As we become more aware of the changing contexts around us, we may begin to notice opportunities that align with both our deepest values and our unique strengths.
For those of us who support others through coaching, counseling, leadership, or ministry, this perspective also expands the conversation. Rather than simply helping someone identify their next job or career move, we can help them consider how their work participates in something larger than themselves. Purpose is often found not only in what we do, but in the contribution our work makes to the flourishing of others.
As you move through these summer weeks, I invite you to notice the world around you with fresh eyes. Where do you see needs that stir something within you? Where do your gifts naturally meet those needs? The answers may not come all at once, but learning to ask those questions is an important first step toward a life of deeper meaning and purpose.
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