Children don’t seem to think about purpose

Children don’t seem to care about the meaning of life or the purpose of their lives. They just follow what feels good and pour their attention to that. Per Maslow's hierarchy of needs, they are motivated by lower-level needs—physiological needs, the need for safety, and the need for connection.

Children jump from one small purpose (i.e., goal) to another without feeling the need to make sense of what ties everything they are doing. Their experience, their happiness was enough. The meaning of what they were doing wasn't that important (Happiness is not the same as meaning).

Can we continue living like this as adults? Well, we could. As humans, I think we can live without articulating our purpose and continue this child-like disposition. But it can be difficult. Old age does something to us—the fear of the future, comparing ourselves to others, the daily grind, or a tragedy. Life and the world does something to us to remove the veil of blissful innocence we had as a child. And that is when we start asking questions about the meaning of life. Existential events or crises compel us to think about purpose.

That said, another approach could be to use this child-like playfulness to arrive at purpose (Focus on what feels good and purpose will follow).