10 Philosophies I live my life by
- Life is short, so live it for yourself, not anyone else.
In life, every single one of us face external pressures: who our parents want us to be, how we should behave in front of strangers, what kind of outfit we should wear to look nice in society’s eyes…
However, every single one of us is going to die at the end.
“Every second is of infinite value.”
— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Before we know it, we will be at the end of our journey, and would you rather regret spending your life living up to other people’s expectations, or would you rather carve out your own path, even if it is a path less taken? Ultimately, we only have 1 life, and we should live it for ourselves, realising our maximum potential.
2. Be indifferent, yet kind.
We meet people from all walks of life: kindred souls, selfish people, those who helped us, those who hurt us. By letting external negative events or people affect our own emotions and quality of life is not worth it, especially since we can and should take full responsibility of our lives. Those who matter deserve your kindness, those who do not are going to die anyways, so why bother being upset?
To allow our own feelings and well-being to fluctuate out of control is doing ourselves a disservice. To feel our emotions, and let it flow past like a river without holding on to it is letting nature take its course, because life has ups and downs naturally.
3. Dream big.
As we grow older, meet new people, gain new experiences, we have changed our fundamental sense of self over time. The soul that resides within my body behaves differently than the soul that resided within my body when I was born, shaped by the pragmatism of reality.
We may have certain unfulfilled dreams since young: I wanna be an astronaut! I wanna learn how to play the piano! I wanna be the best singer!
But when the pragmatism of reality kicks in, we do what the capitalistic system forces us to do: study, get a degree, work, incur expenses, work, incur expenses, work, incur expenses, die. Never forget who we were when we were born, for that is our true selves, and chase the dreams that we deserve.
When we dream big (solving world hunger kind of big), our problems also appear small and we have a sense of purpose due to a clear sense of direction of where we want to go, giving us motivation and confidence, pulled along by the hopes of a better future.
4. Never settle for the current state you are in.
To accept the current state you are in is to let life toss you around like a boat without sails in the choppy oceans. To seek continual improvement is to acquire the skills that allow you to be the master of your life, riding life like a horse, taking you wherever you want to go.
Always seek alternative education from all kinds of fields to better the mind, body and soul. Accepting mediocrity is injustice to yourself since you are not living to your full potential.
5. Let nature take its course.
All of us can choose to take responsibility of our own mindsets and actions to fight against fate, but fate always wins in terms of the outcome. Our own learning, thoughts and behaviours are within our control, while the outcome of events (scoring an ‘A’ for a test, getting a promotion, getting a girlfriend) is beyond our control.
Events that are within our control need our worry not since we can control them, events that are outside our control do not deserve our worry since we have no power over it, so why worry? When faced with a setback, simply learn and move on.
6. Be present.
“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift of God, which is why we call it the present.”
― Bill Keane
More often than not, we spend our time reminiscing the past, wondering what life would have been if we had or had not made a certain choice or spending too much time planning for the future when it has not arrived, forgetting that the present moment is all we have.
Engage in your 5 sense and feel the surroundings, being thankful for everything and everyone in life, since the probability of you meeting another person is almost 0.
7. Hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.
As humans, we all hope for positive change but reality is often not ideal as we hope it to be. Hoping for the best gives us energy and confidence that things will be fine eventually, it is our fuel to live on. Being prepared for the worst is managing our expectations realistically so that in the event things go south, we can cope better since we have already thought about the worst case scenarios and can take precautions.
8. Everything is empty due to the impermanence of life
Fame, money, sex, power, recognition, everything does not matter when we die.
Some may argue that we live to give our parents a better life, but they will fade away eventually, leaving nothing but memories behind. For those who fight for the betterment of humanity, the sun will extinguish sooner or later, wiping out all humanity.
Therefore, there is no meaning in life, except the meaning you give it.
Live life for yourself, while appreciating the companionship along the way without getting too attached to anything since all is temporary and cherish every single second, while accepting that death is a natural phenomenon, just like life.
9. Consume everything in moderation, including moderation.
Too much or too little upsets the balance of nature. When something good happens, do not get overconfident or too happy since it will not last forever. When something bad happens, do not feel demoralised since that next best thing is coming.
Accept events as they occur, because everything is based on the simple and natural causes and effects.
10. Your time is your most valuable asset.
Do not waste a second doing something you do not like or something that has little significance to you and spend years with consistent discipline and resilience to do what is worthy of your time and energy.
Today’s technological advances have allowed us to be more connected than ever, while also bringing us unlimited distractions in life: games, social media etc.
What use is there of playing games?
It brings you short-term pleasure and perhaps can be used as a tool for socialising, yes.
But ultimately, the people who produced the games are making your money and living a good life while you are wasting your precious time which could be used for other more important stuff.
What use is there of using social media?
It can keep you updated of your friends’ lives while you can also share your own life with others.
However, if you are using social media simply to show off how good your life is, you have little self-esteem since you require the validation of strangers to decide how you should or should not live your life.
How matter “friends” on social media are actually worthy of your time?
Those who really matter are already spending time with you regularly, sharing their most private thoughts with you, and you should decide how you want to spend your time with those who do not matter, because your time is limited, and it is impossible to get to know all 8 billion people around the globe.
