Perhaps more fundamentally important than mission or purpose in a life well lived is RELEVANCE. We want and need affirmation. But, even more so, we need to know that who we are and what we do is relevant … legitimate … worth something … and that, somehow, we are OK … being who we are…
Our navigability in the world is heavily dependent on our real or perceived “legitimacy” … le·git·i·ma·cy conformity to the law or to rules. ability to be defended with logic or justification; validity. https://www.google.com/search?q=legitimacy&oq=legitimacy&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.2407j0j7&sourceid=chrome&es_sm=93&ie=UTF-8 Legitimacy is strongly associated with AGENCY: “In social science, agency is the capacity of individuals to act independently and to make their own free…