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Becoming an Excellent Human: Five Great Ideas from Aristotle
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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.
Dont believe it? Lets 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 dont
hold that against him!
Aristotle was full of interesting ideas, and he had quite a
sense of humor as well. Hes 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.
Thats 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
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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 cant incorporate more learning and less vegetating.
Dont pick something boring. Choose ways to learn that excite
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college? A new sport? A stack of library books on a country
youre hoping to visit someday?
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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 itwe 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. Wed be a whole lot wiser if we
did less arguing and more thinking!
The next time someone makes a suggestion you dont 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 dont 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 youve 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 dont even think of as habits
anymorewatching too much television, driving instead of
walking, reading nothing but celebrity magazines, gossiping,
spending too much time shopping, etc. If you havent always done
it, you dont 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 its 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 Aristotles 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!
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