Philosophy has the power to fundamentally change your life for the better. And that’s a fact.
These philosophies are meant to shake you out of complacency.
They’re meant to bring you back down to Earth and make you aware of your presence in the world.
When it hits home, it will give you the inspiration to get out there and kick ass.
There are philosophies that will get you through difficult times and philosophies that will give you some tough love.
Some of these come from well-known ancient philosophers and some of them come from strangers passing each other on a little-known street.
Each of them has the power to shift your perspective and change your life.
Here are 15 Philosophies That Will Change Your Life.
Don’t worry if you don’t feel like reading; you can enjoy the video below or watch it on YouTube:
1
This too shall pass
You’re going to go through tough times. You’re going to be cold, wet, and hungry.
It’s going to get boiling hot, to the point of being sick and bored of being cooped up in the house.
Whatever situation you’re in now isn’t permanent.
At some point, the pendulum will swing and you’ll end up on the other side.
Descending into a hole because of where you are now is pointless.
“This too shall pass” is a philosophy that will change your life once you experience it yourself.
It will remind you that at some point, even the goodwill ends, and if you’re struggling now, the bad won’t last. It will pass.
2
It doesn’t get easier. You get better.
We think that the more we do something, the easier it will get.
It can feel frustrating when you still feel the pain when you’re still putting everything into it and struggling just as much.
What you don’t realize is that, as you get better, you’re also moving the goalposts.
You’re going a little faster and pushing a little harder.
So the task isn’t going to get easier, but that doesn’t mean you’re still at the same place you started.
You’re moving. So keep moving.
3
You’re never going to “feel like” doing it
You’re never going to feel like doing laundry; you’re never going to be fully ready and “feel like” starting a side hustle.
Waiting until you feel like doing it could keep you waiting forever.
You’re allowing your fear and laziness to dictate your life.
You’re going to have to do it anyway and you’re going to feel the same way you do now, with a little more stress.
So why not just do it now?
You need to do it eventually, so make “eventually” right now.
4
Everyone’s drunk on something
One of life’s difficult truths is that everyone has an obsession.
Everyone’s ruled by something apart from themselves and their logical thoughts.
It could be money, constant work, love, hurt, or hate.
When you’re so engrossed by something that it dominates your thoughts, behaviors, and lifestyle, you’re drunk on it.
You can use someone’s obsession to your advantage; you can connect with them that way.
You just have to find out what it is.
5
Never half-ass two things. Whole-ass one thing
If you’ve ever watched the show Parks and Rec – which you should because it’s great – you’d be familiar with Ron Swanson.
He’s snarky, sarcastic, and often hits the nail on the head.
And as he says, when you take on too many things and spread yourself too thin, you do yourself and your work a disservice.
Whatever you’re going to do is going to be mediocre or average because you’re half-assing it.
You should focus your attention and effort on a single task.
Put all your energy into one thing, nail it, and then move on to the next one.
Whole-ass that one thing.
6
Be the kind of person who doesn’t need second chances
We all make mistakes; we’re not perfect.
But bad decisions aren’t mistakes; they’re selfish choices.
If you’ve made enough decisions that someone you love has cut you off and let go of you, then let it go.
You’ve already messed up there.
Instead of continuing to torment them, become the kind of person who doesn’t need second chances.
7
Life will go on, whether you choose to board the train or stay on the platform
As you stand on the platform, the train comes into the station.
You’re scared.
You have no idea what you will get or where you will go once you board the train.
It could be great. It could be bad.
As the seconds tick by and you try to decide whether to board or not, you look at the platform—warm, comfortable, and familiar.
You make your own decisions.
8
Man is condemned to be free
This is an existentialist viewpoint by the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre.
We place so much value on freedom; we think we’ve fought for it and we deserve it.
But actually, freedom isn’t always the choice or privilege we think it is. It’s an inescapable part of human existence.
This choice is a burden. Let us explain how this philosophy will change your life:
While we are free to choose our actions, we aren’t free to choose whether we want to make the choice or not.
These choices come with consequences and we have to live with them.
You are responsible for defining yourself and giving meaning to your life, and you can’t escape this responsibility by blaming fate, destiny, or divine will.
9
He who has a reason to live can bear almost any how
This quote is by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche and it’s echoed in the book Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl.
Frankl’s entire family was killed in Holocaust concentration camps. He survived.
He endured horrendous conditions, but he survived. In his book, he says it’s because he developed a “why” for his life.
His why extended beyond the people he loved.
His life was unbelievably difficult but he pushed forward because there’s power in meaning and purpose.
If you want to feel like this life isn’t for nothing, you have to find your meaning, whatever it is, however big or small it is.
This philosophy will change your life because it’s the only way you can bear the “how”—the challenges, the grief, and the hurt.
What’s your reason?
10
You can’t step into the same river twice
This one comes from the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus.
He wanted us to see that life is in constant flux.
Nothing is permanent in life or in nature.
The people and things we love will come and go and be replaced by new people and things.
Just as a river’s water is always flowing and constantly changing, so too is everything in the universe.
The water you step into at one moment is not the same water you would step into even a moment later.
Even if you step in the same way, you will have changed from a moment ago.
New water would have flowed under you.
Your life views radically change once you understand the philosophy that no moment will be the same as the one that’s just passed.
11
“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? And if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?”
It sounds wordy but listen again because every sentence hits home.
Sage and Scholar Hillel the Elder really got it right with this one.
First, if you don’t stand up for yourself, who will stand up for you?
You can’t expect other people to believe in you if you don’t believe in yourself. Y
You need to advocate for yourself. You have to care for yourself. That’s your responsibility!
The next line, “And if I’m only for myself, what am I?” tells you about communal responsibility and empathy.
It’s important to care for yourself, but you can’t be self-centered because that diminishes your humanity.
You have to care for others. You have to be part of a community.
And lastly, “And if not now, then when?” Whatever you’re going to do, do it now.
Don’t delay important actions. You might miss your opportunity.
12
“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.”
The societal expectations and restrictions to which we are subject can be suffocating, according to French philosopher Albert Camus.
Instead of giving in to this suffocation, the only way we can fight it is to rebel against it.
Freedom is not about political or social liberty but about autonomy and self-determination.
This philosophy will change your life because it asks a simple question: What are your values and beliefs?
Live by your answer. That’s real freedom.
13
To have doubted one’s own first principles is the mark of a civilized man
Even though you have your own values, beliefs, and principles, you must always question them.
Never believe that you’re right.
Never believe that you know it all or that you’re right and have it all figured out.
Questioning your own beliefs is a sign of intellectual maturity.
It means you’re doing the right thing.
Our first principles are deeply ingrained and taken as truths.
But where do they come from?
Challenging your most deeply held views shows that you’re wise and that you value rationality and open-mindedness.
14
The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house
This one comes from writer and civil rights activist Audre Lorde.
We can’t use the same tools as oppressive systems to try to overcome that oppression.
We have to use innovative, radical, and transformative methods to fight against the system.
Some things are so deeply ingrained within the fabric of social, political, and economic systems that we need to completely overhaul how we’ll tackle them.
It’s complicated. We have a lot of work to do.
But this quote reminds us of where we should start.
15
What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as who you become by achieving your goals
Striving for the ultimate end result is in our nature. We can’t help ourselves.
We will do everything we can to get what we want and we’re fueled by that desire. But it’s strange when you get what you want and that euphoric feeling seems to fall instead of ascending.
The truth is that as we work towards reaching our goals, we change.
Our priorities shift slightly.
Under pressure, we make sacrifices we may not have made.
Whether we’re happy with the change or not, the person who strives for the goal is not the same one who reaches it.
It’s important to remember this so that, along the journey, you can make sure that the person you’re becoming is someone you’re proud of.
However, there’s one thing we want you to learn before implementing any philosophy on this list into your life: the rules of change.
We hope that these 15 philosophies we’ve just discussed will lead to change in your life. See you next time!
