The Laughing Philosopher's Podcast thelaughingphilosopher

Aristotle’s wisdom can make you a more likable person with more and better friends. For Aristotle, without friends, no one would want to live. Friendship is the chief cornerstone of living well and doing well. To be more likable and have more friends, don’t do three things: Don’t prove you have nothing of value to say by speaking. Don’t judge the imperfections of others. Don’t believe everything you think.

Romantic relationships are difficult and perilous and no soft affair. They seem to fail as often as they succeed. Five hidden triggers can sabotage even the best relationship. Communication, trust, togetherness, predictability, and submissiveness are beneficial in moderation, but toxic in excess. We suspect it’s true, but are afraid to admit to ourselves, that too much positive behavior will kill a good relationship.

It’s not easy to ruin your life. To get to the wrong place, you must do the right things. The Laughing Philosopher’s guide presents six foolproof steps to a boring, miserable life: Think only about yourself. Empty yourself of humility and gratitude. Sacrifice everyone as a means to an end. Be perfectly imperfect. Don’t think for yourself. Drown yourself in the world’s sea of troubles.

Unjustly imprisoned and awaiting execution, Boethius, Roman philosopher and statesman, would write his most famous work, “The Consolation of Philosophy”. Boethius explores the problem of evil, the certainty of pain and suffering, and the unpredictability of good and bad fortune, but shows how, through wisdom and virtue, happiness and serenity are still attainable. In the Middle Ages, for 400 years, “The Consolation” was one of two books considered so important they were expected to be in everyone’s personal library. The other book was The Holy Bible. 

The person you will talk to the most in your life is you. The most important conversations you will ever have are with yourself. Whether it is chatting with yourself in your inner voice, or verbalizing your thoughts and reflections out loud, you will engage in some form of self-talk on a daily basis. But, is it normal to talk to yourself?

"Know yourself” is Socrates’ imperative. Why? There is no perfect life. No one is infallible. Everyone makes mistakes because some of our beliefs and assumptions are false. Just because we think it or believe it doesn’t mean it is true. Yet, beliefs are neither proof nor evidence, but only claims. So, we can’t trust everything we believe to be true. But, still we do. False certainties lead us away from truth and virtue. Which path leads us to wisdom?