This past week, a former student reached out to me for some advice about a career path she was considering. I’ve been out of education for almost six years now, so this doesn’t happen very often anymore. It led to a short back-and-forth, and I offered her some words of encouragement to help her through the struggles she’s going through.

And I have to say, it awakened something in me that I thought was long gone. I don’t think I’m crazy enough to consider going back to the classroom full time, but it reminded me of why I chose to become a teacher in the first place.

Since that conversation, I’ve been considering putting myself on a sub list and doing some subbing on Fridays. I work a four-tens schedule and am off every Friday, so this would be a low-risk, low-investment way to dip my toe back into the world of education without diving headfirst into the stress of full-time teaching.

I’m also looking into creating educational videos for math and engineering students on YouTube. Between the two—subbing one day a week and creating educational videos—I think it might help me rediscover the sense of meaning I lost when I walked away from education.

When I left teaching, it created a huge void in my life. Up to that point, I had thrown everything I had into what I can only describe as a calling to teach and mentor young people. So when I was teaching full time, it was extremely satisfying (albeit exhausting) to be of service to my community in that way.

That’s what I want to focus on in this post: the idea that each of us has something inside, a calling, to be of service to our community. A need to be part of something bigger than ourselves. And if you haven’t found yours yet, I encourage you to keep looking.

In fact, I’d argue that in our current political climate, we could use more of that, more of a push to find our place in our communities and to do what we can to lessen the suffering of others. As my boy Neil deGrasse Tyson once said:

“For me, I am driven by two main philosophies: know more today about the world than I knew yesterday and lessen the suffering of others. You’d be surprised how far that gets you.” — Neil deGrasse Tyson

It’s a simple quote, but a profound one. It lays out the best plan I know for finding and living your purpose.

First, don’t be satisfied with your current level of knowledge about life, the world, anything. My students used to complain that they’d never use the math I was teaching them.

And I’d always try to drive home this point: if you only learn what you need to get by in life, you’ll end up being quite dumb. I tried to say it more tactfully than that, but the point stands.

This life is full of mysteries, and so many people have figured out fascinating things about it. There’s a world of knowledge at our fingertips, and the more you learn, the clearer your place in all of it becomes.

Add to that the idea of doing what you can to lessen the suffering of others, and you’ve got a pretty solid blueprint for finding happiness in a world that can often feel dark and depressing. It really comes down to changing your mindset.

My default setting is to be negative, to hate life and hate people. To think everyone is in my way and that I can’t trust anyone. That’s a great attitude if your goal is self-protection; the more skeptical you are, the less likely you are to get hurt. But it’s a terrible attitude for being happy.

Lately, I’ve found that letting go of that internal resistance and being more willing to go with the flow of life makes me a whole lot happier and a whole lot less anxious.

For example, this morning I was in my apartment when I heard a loud knock on my door. When I answered, two older women were there, and it quickly became clear they were there to preach to me.

When I was younger, that would’ve frustrated me. I would have been short with them, maybe even shut the door in their faces. But today, I decided to set that negativity aside and just let them do their thing.

I don’t need to believe what they believe to listen to them. I can let them talk about things I don’t necessarily believe anymore without letting it frustrate or anger me. That frustration and anger are rooted in old pain anyway. They’re not reflections of the present moment.

And you know what? We had a decent conversation. They didn’t linger long, and we parted on good terms.

I believe that now, more than ever, we need to learn how to talk to each other without letting our disagreements wind us up. We’re being pitted against one another, and as a result, we’ve stopped listening. When that happens, nobody’s happy. But if we learn to listen—to agree to disagree without needing others to conform to our beliefs—we can find our place in the community and perhaps even find ways to be of service.

So, going forward, I’m in pursuit of this higher calling. I used to think the only way to fulfill it was in the classroom. But I’m realizing there are many ways to be of service outside of education. And it all centers on the second part of Tyson’s quote: finding ways to lessen the suffering of others.

At the end of the day, purpose isn’t always found in grand gestures. It’s found in the small choices we make each day to be of service, to learn, and to connect with the world around us. Whether it’s stepping into a classroom for a single day, sharing knowledge through a video, or simply listening to someone with an open heart, these moments matter.

They remind us that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. And in giving, in learning, and in showing up, we not only lessen the suffering of others, but we also rediscover the joy, meaning, and fulfillment that makes life worth living.

To end this post, I want to post a clip from one of my favorite movies (and one of the few “chick flicks” that I actually like). I just re-watched the movie Serendipity (starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale) last night, and this scene always moves me whenever I watch it:

So, I’ll end by asking you a question…whether it’s true or not, which do you think is a more useful and inspiring way to move through the world? To believe that this is all there is, that we are alone on this planet, and that this life has no meaning? Or to believe that everything you do is ordered in accordance with a sublime plan?

Do you need to believe in God to believe there is a path for your life? Absolutely not (though it might be the best way for you to realize your potential). What if the path for your life, what’s driving you, is a deeply unconscious need to have meaning and purpose? In that sense, then, your path through this world is ordered by your own unconscious need for meaning and service to your community.

And I think that’s absolutely beautiful.