It
was Socrates who said that the purpose of
philosophy is to help each of us become “an
excellent human”. That seems like a
respectable and reasonable big-picture goal
for every person on the planet.
But what about the specifics? How do we become
excellent humans? How can we use philosophy in
our everyday lives to help us succeed in this
most important goal as homo sapiens?
The surprising thing about philosophy is that
it is incredibly user-friendly if you take it
in small doses. For thousands of years,
thoughtful individuals have contemplated the
meaning of life. Many of the greatest
philosophers spoke eloquently about the
challenges we all face today in words that are
easily understood and truly inspiring.
Don’t believe it? Let’s start with a few
thoughts from Aristotle. The student of Plato,
who was the student of Socrates, Aristotle
lived in the third century B.C. But don’t
hold that against him!
Aristotle was full of interesting ideas, and
he had quite a sense of humor as well. He’s
a guy you could imagine sitting in your
kitchen, engaging in a memorable conversation
over a shared bottle of wine. Think of him as
a really wise friend, and use his ideas to
help you TODAY to become a more excellent
human.
Aristotle believed that everything had a
purpose. He stated that our purpose as humans
is to think in order to live a good life.
That’s it. As long as we continue to
contemplate the universe and our role in it,
we are fulfilling our purpose.
So, to help you contemplate the universe
today, here are five inspiring thoughts from
our friend, Aristotle:
Thought #1:
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence,
then, is not an act, but a habit.”
What is it that you repeatedly do? Greet
people on the street, let another car into a
busy street in front of you, leave nice tips
for frazzled waitpersons, read to your
children, phone your elderly aunt? What do
your habits say about you? Is that the message
you want to send?
How can you change your habits or adopt new
ones to reflect your desire to become more
excellent? What excellent acts can you do
repeatedly so that they become a habit? What
can you do TODAY to intentionally start a
habit that will lead to excellence? Pick
something simple and just get started.
Thought #2:
“Education is the best provision for old
age.”
What are you learning these days?
How are you spending your free time? Take a
look at how you are including learning in your
daily life. Do you read? If so, are you
learning from it? Do you watch television?
Yes, it can be educational, but seriously
analyze your viewing habits and see if you
can’t incorporate more learning and less
vegetating.
Don’t pick something boring. Choose ways to
learn that excite and inspire you. A cooking
class through your local community college? A
new sport? A stack of library books on a
country you’re hoping to visit someday?
Pursue your interests with a passion, and you
will always continue learning. Promise
yourself you’ll always have interesting
things to talk about when you are old—and
this doesn't mean ailments and treatments!
Learn now how to ignite your own curiosity and
pursue learning as a lifelong adventure.
Thought #3:
“It is the mark of an educated mind to be
able to entertain a thought without accepting
it.”
We all do it—we hear an idea, and we
immediately attach ourselves to an opinion
about it without really giving it the time it
takes to form a reasoned conclusion. The
problem with smart people is that we tend to
use our intelligence to argue in defense of
our chosen opinions. We’d be a whole lot
wiser if we did less arguing and more
thinking!
The next time someone makes a suggestion you
don’t like or states an opinion you disagree
with, try this: Wait three minutes before
denouncing it. Now, this doesn't that you
should just sit there, fuming or smug or
disinterested. Instead, “entertain” the
thought. Ask questions. Show interest. Be
open, engaged and nonconfrontational. When
your three minutes are up, you can feel free
to express your original opinion. More often
than not, your original opinion will have
changed a bit because you have spent some time
holding a thought without attacking it.
The trick here is to separate the thought from
the thinker. Are you sure you don’t dislike
the thought because you dislike the thinker?
We all have people in our lives who push our
buttons. Take the high road. Entertain the
thought. Your eventual rebuttal will be more
easily accepted after you’ve shown that you
have carefully considered the concept. Try
this at work, try it with your friends, try it
with your family. This is a surefire path to
excellence.
Thought #4:
“What lies in our power to do, also lies in
our power not to do.”
Ah, yes. Those bad habits? You can change
them. If you had the initiative at some point
to do something, you can choose to stop doing
it. This goes for overeating, smoking,
drinking too much, and all the usual bad
habits.
It also hold true for things we don’t even
think of as habits anymore—watching too much
television, driving instead of walking,
reading nothing but celebrity magazines,
gossiping, spending too much time shopping,
etc. If you haven’t always done it, you
don’t have to continue doing it. You do have
the power to make changes.
Thought #5:
“Well begun is half done.”
We all understand that setting a goal, doing
the research, and making a plan will increase
the likelihood that our chosen task will be
successfully completed. Whether it’s a home
improvement project, a vacation schedule, or a
tricky new recipe, proper preparation will
save us a lot of time and effort.
Start using Aristotle’s ideas today to help
you become an excellent human. Make your best
acts your best habits. Learn something new
each day. Entertain contrary thoughts. Begin
to undo bad habits. Prepare yourself for
excellence.
Aristotle would be so proud.
|
| About
the Author |
| Maya
Talisman Frost is a mind masseuse. Her course,
"Massage Your Mind!: Defining Your Life
Philosophy", has inspired thinkers in
over 60 countries around the world. Sign up
for her free weekly e-zine, the Friday Mind
Massage, by visiting http://www.massageyourmind.com
today! |
|
|
|
