A Philosophical Mind | The Core of Self-Development

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Why is philosophy so important?

 

First lets discuss common misconceptions. Philosophy, like education has transformed into a bastardized version of what it truly is. When I was young, I was reading many books on philosophy, Bertrand Russell mostly, and others. While they were enjoyable and edifying, it was so far from the style of philosophy that I saw as important.

 

When I first discovered actualized.org, I realized what I had been searching for. The seeker finally arrives to the place he was seeking. It felt like I  stumbled on a gold mine that I always knew existed. I may have stumbled upon it, but I was no stranger to this land.

 

The simple topics, such as "what is perception" "the counter-intuitive nature of life" "65 core principles to live the good life" is what constitutes as the core of philosophy for me. Current and modern philosophers alike, while their work was still impressive and interesting, they fell into the classic trap of not seeing the forest for the trees. Their work is dense, complicated, rambling, and in the end, leaves one with a feeling of being purely inside one's head. In other words, mental masturbation. After ejaculation, you kinda feel like "that was nice I guess". A funny story I read in a book was that a philosopher was looking into the sky and thinking deeply while walking, and someone tripped him to teach him the lesson not to let thinking distract him for being.

 

Alain de Button, although he has problems, was the first to introduce to Michele de Montaigne, who unlike many other philosophers spoke of the relevant problems of what it means to be human. This is what I was looking for. The conception of what is a philosopher in our culture is the bearded old man, endlessly pontificating on questions which are irrelevant to the "real world". While some of this judgment is misplaced, I can totally understand why. It is somewhat true.

 

Philosophy is not only relevant to the real world, I just don't see any other way you can even understand what the real world is without it. Let alone what isn't or is relevant to it. Philosophy is the antidote to so many of what ails us as a culture. To the most relevant problems of today. Such as not falling for misinformation, of understanding oneself, of living the good life, of what to value, how to find your life purpose, etc.

 

Is it the only thing you need? Of course not. But it is a great foundation to have. In my own life, when I started thinking like a philosopher by questioning things like my religion and trying to understand what truth is, a radical transformation in my psychology ensued. Philosophy changed my psychology more than reading about psychology did. Powerful stuff. I got so many things wrong at first, but that only added to my understanding of what truth IS NOT, hence what truth IS. Not just theoretical understanding, but also experiential understanding of how I thought this was true when it was not.

 

Like I said, it's not the only tool. Philosophy, psychology, self-help and spirituality synergize greatly. Add on top of that understanding health/nutrition, business, and sprinkle some basic understanding of general science, politics, history, etc. You have a potent formula for success.

Your mind becomes multi-dimensional, you can feel how different your thought process is now compared to before you embarked on this journey. Night and day. Now it is not simply "philosophy", it is literally how your mind work. Its modus operandi.

 

Philosophy isn't a subject matter but a way of being, thinking, and living.