00:00:00.000 10-Minute Philosophy

00:05:56.080 The Trolley Dilemma.

00:09:57.040 Philosophy Is About Thinking.

00:13:08.600 What’s Your Life Philosophy?

10-Minute Philosophy: From Buddhism to Stoicism, Confucius and Aristotle

- Bite-Sized Wisdom From Some of History's Greatest Thinkers By:

Patrick King

Hear it Here - https://bit.ly/10MinPhil

https://www.amazon.com/10-Minute-Philosophy-Confucius-Aristotle-Bite-Sized-ebook/dp/B07T9QVSX7

Feeling lost and searching for answers? You're not alone! In this

video, we'll explore the exciting world of philosophy with Patrick

King's book, "10-Minute Philosophy."

We'll break down complex ideas from some of history's greatest thinkers,

like Buddha, Stoics, Confucius, and Aristotle, all in

easy-to-understand, bite-sized chunks.

10-Minute Philosophy:

From Buddhism to Stoicism,

Confucius and Aristotle - Bite-Sized Wisdom From Some of History's Greatest Thinkers Written by

Patrick King

Narrated by Russell Newton.

Philosophy is one of those words that

function like a Rorschach test.

Philosophy is one of those words that

function like a Rorschach test.

A Rorschach test is otherwise known as

the inkblot test.

Certain types of psychologists show

their patients an ambiguous image that

vaguely resembles an inkwell spilled

onto a piece of paper to gain insight

into the perspectives and

interpretations of their patient.

The thought is that patients will see

in the ambiguous image whatever they

want to see in it,

and that is representative of how they

see the world,

their emotional state,

and so on.

Two people looking at the same blurry

splotch of ink can see two vastly

different images,

and it will have nothing to do with the

image itself.

And so it is with philosophy.

I bring this up because philosophy

isn’t always viewed with positivity

or even interest.

If you think of philosophy as

time-wasting thumb-twiddling,

then that is undoubtedly what you will

get out of it.

You’ll just hear a multitude of empty

platitudes and wonder what the point of

it all even is.

This skeptical approach is fairly

common and at times understandable.

After all,

what problems are being solved simply

by thinking and pontificating about

them?

Indeed,

if I’m hungry or in need of shelter

right now,

it’s difficult to see the value that

philosophy can add to someone’s life.

What tangible benefit is there to

figuring out the purpose of our lives?

Tangible?

Zero.

But philosophy was never about that.

If you’re looking for a field of

study to enrich your immediate

surroundings,

I might suggest that you pick up an

engineering or finance book.

Philosophy has always been about

enriching your thoughts for greater

happiness and fulfillment—an

immeasurable quantity,

but perhaps the greatest purpose of all.

Admittedly,

this was a mindset I also used to

possess.

If you were to create a hierarchy in

society,

especially in more ancient and brutal

times,

surely a philosopher would rank far

lower than the average hunter,

carpenter,

or fisherman—at least in terms of

pure utility.

What was the role of a philosopher in a

society beyond their teaching duties?

But consider how our ancestors were

able to figure out calculus,

discern the relative size of the earth,

and map out constellations.

Eventually,

when food and shelter weren’t

immediate concerns,

people were able to just sit and think

about things,

and this freedom of time is how humans

were able to advance.

Philosophers became repositories of

knowledge and discourse.

They became explorers,

discoverers,

and scientists.

It is certainly no coincidence that

when we look back at the lives of the

most famous philosophers in history,

they invariably were also scientists,

teachers,

and even mathematicians.

The human need for understanding (some

might say a sense of control)

of their surroundings is insatiable,

and it’s only natural that it would

eventually spill over from practical

concerns such as agriculture and

calculus into topics such as purpose,

ethics,

morality,

meaning,

knowledge,

and how to live.

To evoke Maslow’s hierarchy of needs,

once our physical and then emotional

needs are satisfied,

we will inevitably turn our attention

to learning,

wisdom,

exploration,

and fulfillment.

The word “philosophy” comes from

the Greek phrase meaning “love of

wisdom."

And who doesn’t want more wisdom?

Philosophers began with an intense

curiosity about the mysterious world

around them and sought out answers in

the only way they could.

They didn’t have the benefit of

science or technology to find answers,

so they had to start from ground zero

and use thinking,

reasoning,

and critical analysis to gain truth and

knowledge.

How might you determine why men and

women are different or why the sun

rises in the morning?

The only place you can start is by

thinking and pondering,

making observations,

and then challenging everything you

thought you knew.

This is perhaps why philosophy can

appear circular and redundant,

constantly asking Why do you know what

you think you know?

That’s all they had,

and you’ll get a full dose of that

approach when you read later on about

Rene Descartes.

They grappled with questions that we

still can’t prove or definitively

answer even with today’s

technological advances.

But this didn’t deter them.

What is life?

What is right and wrong?

What is our purpose?

How should we live our lives?

What is real and what is not?

Philosophy seeks to answer these

questions,

and by and large,

different schools of philosophy sprang

out of different answers and approaches.

We’re nowhere closer to objective

answers to any of those questions some

two millennia later,

but many perspectives have been

created,

each with the possibility of increasing

your happiness and fulfillment—your

true benefit from learning philosophy.

This will ultimately be the purpose of

this book - exploring a set of

approaches to fulfillment and finding

one that helps you find your personal

version of it.

You might find that none of the

approaches resonate except one.

In that case,

feel free to discard what you don’t

like.

You might find that each of them

resonates in their own way,

and in that case,

cobble together a Frankenstein version

of your approach to happiness,

taking bits and pieces from everything.

But as you will see from the following

thought experiment,

it’s not so easy as simply steering

your ship toward a destination.

The Trolley Dilemma.

One of the most famous philosophical

questions comes in the form of the

trolley dilemma,

and it is a question of ethics and

morality.

You can think of this problem as

determining what is moral and what is

not,

for yourself and others.

In doing so,

you might find that your idea of

morality directly conflicts with that

of others.

It was originally developed as a

thought experiment by Philippa Foot in

1967 and adapted by Judith Thomson

afterward,

and the nature of any dilemma is that

it produces different answers that

demand to be examined.

There is fertile ground for

disagreement and exploration of

different interpretations.

Each different answer underlies a

different set of values and formative

life experiences.

Imagine you are standing beside some

trolley tracks.

You see a runaway trolley screaming

down the tracks toward five workers who

are facing away from it and don’t

hear it coming.

Even if they miraculously become aware

of their imminent mortality,

they are still doomed to their deaths.

You are an innocent bystander,

and you fortunately have some knowledge

of how trolley tracks work.

You see a lever that is connected to

the tracks within touching distance,

and you realize that if you were to

pull the lever,

the trolley would be diverted down a

second set of tracks and the five

workers would be saved.

However—and this is where the dilemma

comes in—you would be diverting the

trolley down a track that would kill

one worker.

So would you pull the lever and save

five people at the expense of one?

Would you even act?

Could you think in a utilitarian way

and reason to yourself that you are

actually saving four lives?

And would any of those types of

thinking affect the amount of guilt you

might feel?

What about if you didn’t move a

muscle—would you be morally wrong for

complete inaction?

What if you didn’t want to be

responsible for making any decision at

all?

What if you believed in fatalism and

the matter being out of your hands?

What if you thought that one life was

equal to four lives in the grand scheme

of things,

so why bother?

There is no wrong answer.

The trolley itself becomes a substitute

for people and forces you to think

through the consequences and whether

the rightness or wrongness of an action

is determined solely by the outcome or

by the intentions.

In studies and surveys,

it turns out most people would pull the

lever and divert the trolley to kill

one person while sparing five.

It seems that instinctually we are

mostly utilitarians at heart and will

do what is best for the greatest number

of people.

But does that mean we would sacrifice

ourselves in order to let a boatful of

children live?

What if the five workers were all

convicted murderers and the single

worker was on par with Mother

Teresa’s impact?

What if they were five elderly people

with raging cancer?

The permutations of what these choices

can mean and what they say about us are

endless.

There are no correct or incorrect

answers when you are seeking to gain

wisdom and knowledge—even an answer

that says “I would try to make sure

all six people are killed” is not

incorrect and provides a valid

perspective.

We all inherently want to do good,

for ourselves and others—or do we?

If this is starting to sound confusing,

welcome to your quick introduction to

philosophical thinking.

The trolley dilemma is merely an

example of the type of information and

knowledge we can gain from simple

pondering and thinking;

it’s far from a useless pursuit,

as these types of considerations

influence law,

policy,

and decisions on both conscious and

subconscious levels.

In this case,

you are forced to explore what it means

to be ethical and moral.

You will see that there is no such

thing as a simple answer inside of a

vacuum.

Philosophical thinking may not provide

tangible benefits in itself,

but the process you use to get there

certainly will.

Philosophy Is About Thinking.

What kind of approach do you need in

order to have any hope of making sense

of the trolley dilemma?

For starters,

you need a sense of analysis,

logic,

organization,

and the overall ability to think in

terms of consequences and implications.

When you go down one thread of thought,

what are the considerations that arise

from it,

why do they exist,

and what do they lead to?

If that leads to a dead end,

then you need to be able to backtrack

and explore other perspectives with

thoroughness.

Philosophy requires the unfiltered

skill of critical thinking and analysis.

It’s something that we constantly pay

lip service to but don’t really delve

into the meaning of.

Unfortunately this does take

considerable effort,

as it runs counter to how our brains

are wired.

Philosophy is about the pursuit of

thinking,

and it teaches analysis of arguments,

logical constructions,

and critical reasoning.

It teaches cognitive biases and logical

fallacies,

as well as a sense of discovery

because,

as you can see,

no one answer is ever enough.

You must always go deeper;

there is always a next level down to

explore.

Your view is always limited and biased;

how can you take on a different

perspective?

While it may sound tedious,

for the lover of wisdom,

it’s a good thing.

You’ll challenge your own point of

view and understand why others have

merit.

For instance,

in the trolley dilemma,

it’s about solving a problem with no

real answer.

With philosophy,

you gain creative problem-solving

skills.

You learn to organize and classify

information in a multitude of ways,

all useful to a particular purpose.

You’ll learn how to construct an

argument and identify points that say

what they are representing,

as well as those that are basically

deceptions.

Perhaps the greatest and most adaptable

skill you gain from philosophy is the

ability to function and even thrive in

the ambiguous.

This is something else that we are

wired against—we typically want

certainty,

especially in the face of a question or

problem.

But in philosophy,

there are no true answers,

only multiple valid perspectives.

Where does that leave you?

Needing to cultivate a set of

techniques to question and understand

deeper—these are the wandering and

circuitous thoughts that appear to lead

to nowhere to the casual observer but

in reality are drilling down deep into

knowledge and wisdom.

With this ability comes a certain

open-mindedness of what each different

perspective entails.

That’s something that no one is born

with and that we must gain through

practice.

So if you are skeptical about why you

might want to pick this book up or read

on,

there are very real benefits to

learning philosophy—just not if

you’re hungry or in need of a place

to sleep in the rain.

Life is not typically certain or

concrete,

so abstract thinking will assist you

considerably.

Yet this still pales in comparison to

the value of finding your life

philosophy,

a personalized path to fulfillment and

happiness based on some of history’s

greatest thinkers.

What’s Your Life Philosophy?

Philosophy gives you hard skills,

some might even say marketable and

employable skills—even if a degree in

philosophy is not known as such.

But philosophy arguably gives you the

most important thing you can have as a

person—clarity on your own views,

values,

and perspectives.

And it’s only through understanding

those aspects that you can understand

how to create the best life for

yourself.

How did you answer the trolley dilemma?

Would you have pulled that lever?

What went through your head as you made

your decision?

That’s who you are at the current

moment,

for better or worse.

That’s where you stand on the

spectrum of morality and ethics.

It may just be a simple yes or no on

pulling the lever,

but it speaks to so much more of how

you view the world and your place in it.

Your actions stem from your values and

morals,

and it behooves you to understand why

you do the things you do.

Philosophy imparts self-understanding,

one of the rarest qualities in the

world.

You understand what appeals to you and

what you simply couldn’t care less

about.

From self-understanding,

you can build the life you want.

Imagine if a doctor were to prescribe a

course of antibiotics based on only the

symptoms and not the causes of an

illness.

That’s what we are dealing with if we

lack self-understanding.

This is what I would refer to as a life

philosophy—a code of behavior and

mindsets that you seek to live your

life by to optimize your happiness.

They are rules you set for yourself to

fulfill your values on a daily basis.

The simplest example is someone who

endlessly pursues money to the

detriment of their relationships.

Clearly their philosophy is oriented on

wealth,

and they gain self-worth from it—even

if they don’t know it or want to

admit it.

If they know it,

they can orient themselves toward what

fulfills them and avoid that which does

not.

It’s all we are really looking for in

life.

Everyone has a life philosophy,

but most don’t know they do,

and even fewer are able to describe it.

If you were to ask someone,

it would most likely be someone

else’s philosophy parroted back at

you.

This is simply because most of us

don’t know who we are or what we want

from life.

We are directionless,

or we simply float through the path of

least resistance and pain.

A life philosophy helps you avoid all

that by clarifying what is and is not

important.

That is the biggest benefit of the

study of philosophy,

and indeed this book seeks to provide

the life philosophies of some pretty

sharp thinkers to emulate or disregard.

What was Aristotle’s take on

happiness and fulfillment,

and how does that compare to Marcus

Aurelius’s or Confucius’s?

Does the life philosophy of stoicism

align with your values more,

or do you prefer the principles of

Taoism?

What texts shed light on what’s

important to you,

what you want to avoid,

and what you want to emulate?

Surely we can learn from these titans

of thought.

Living without a life philosophy is

like sailing a boat without a map,

engine,

or even end destination in mind.

You’re probably seeking contentment

and happiness,

but you don’t know where it is.

You don’t know what direction

you’re headed in,

and even if you knew,

you would have no way to change course.

You simply drift according to life’s

external forces on you.

You might come to the frightening

realization that you’ve spent your

life drifting toward things you don’t

care about.

You haven’t chosen your own path;

you’ve just acted as a vessel for the

people and context surrounding you.

Learn about yourself,

discover what is important,

take responsibility for your own

fulfillment,

and directly pursue your own definition

of happiness.

Every small daily action acts to put us

either further or closer to the correct

course.

While an educational tour through some

of history’s greatest beliefs,

10-Minute Philosophy is ultimately

about better and happier living.

It would be foolish if we didn’t look

into the past and borrow from ancient

people’s wisdom and apply it to our

own modern lives.

Each of the philosophies in this book

has undergone thousands of years of

scrutiny and has emerged intact.

If you take away our modern

trappings—electricity,

Internet,

and jet planes—not much has changed

about us.

Humans are still perpetually in search

of happiness and fulfillment.

A final note before we start - this is

not meant to be an in-depth primer on

multiple sets of religions,

philosophies,

and belief systems.

It is an introduction (10 minutes,

so to speak)

of what these philosophies espouse and

how you might be able to fit them into

your life for a boost of happiness and

fulfillment.

Of course,

ancient beliefs cannot be distilled,

but all it takes is a single thought or

shift of mindset to dramatically alter

your life.

Think of it as a shot glass of instant

wisdom for your review.

Not everything is covered in grinding

detail,

and concepts have been left out

purposefully for clarity’s sake.

We have one goal here—find a helpful

path to happiness.

Takeaways -

•Philosophy means different things to

different people,

so I would like to present what it

means to me.

It’s about self-understanding and

then taking and stealing from some of

history’s greatest thinkers to form

the basis of what makes you happy.

It’s only when you understand

yourself that you can move forward in a

way that is more likely to lead to your

happiness.

In other words,

clearer thinking leads to

self-understanding,

which leads to your life philosophy

emerging.

Formulating your own life philosophy is

key to the life you want,

and it influences all of your daily

actions,

big and small.

•The trolley dilemma is a

demonstration of the other major

benefit of delving into philosophical

thought.

You learn how to think.

You learn how to argue,

debate,

and reason.

You learn how a seemingly innocent or

simple question can have wide-ranging

implications and consequences.

You can learn to thrive in the

ungrounded,

abstract,

and ambiguous.

And when you direct this thinking

toward deeper questions that philosophy

presents,

you can begin to understand yourself

more than ever before.

•Philosophy won’t directly feed

your family or put a roof over your

head,

but indirectly,

it leads to all that and more.

This has been

10-Minute Philosophy:

From Buddhism to Stoicism,

Confucius and Aristotle - Bite-Sized Wisdom From Some of History's Greatest Thinkers Written by

Patrick King

Narrated by Russell Newton.