Philosophical Counseling

By Leo Gura - August 6, 2024

There exists an entire profession called Philosophical Counseling.

It’s when an academically trained philosopher (with a masters or PhD in philosophy) is employed as a consultant or coach to help you think through existential problems in your life. For example, maybe you’re confused about whether there are only two genders, or more. So you hire a philosophical counselor who will help you contemplate through the issue and reach some kind of conclusion that will put your mind at ease.

According to Wikipedia, here’s what philosophical counseling involves:

“A philosophical practitioner helps clients to clarify, articulate, explore and comprehend philosophical aspects of their belief systems or world views. Clients may consult philosophical practitioners for help in exploring philosophical problems related to such matters as mid-life crises, career changes, stress, emotions, assertiveness, physical illness, death and dying, aging, meaning of life, and morality. On the other side philosophical practitioners also initiate projects in common life worlds with various goals that are related to essential problems of life, such as sustainable energy, direct democracy, etc.

Activities common to philosophical practice include:

  1. The examination of clients’ arguments and justifications
  2. The clarification, analysis, and definition of important terms and concepts
  3. The exposure and examination of underlying assumptions and logical implications
  4. The exposure of conflicts and inconsistencies
  5. The exploration of traditional philosophical theories and their significance for client issues
  6. The initiation of projects for common goods
  7. All other related activities that have historically been identified as philosophical.”

I just wanted to share this because I thought it was a really cool application of philosophy and I’m sure some of you who follow my work would be interested in such a unique profession as a life purpose.

In light of this profession, I am like a Philosophical Drillmaster — where I bludgeon you with practical philosophy until you change how you live your life.

“Hey, Johnny, who do you want to be when you grow up? An astronaut? A firefighter?”

“A philosophical counselor!”

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