Philosophy Watchlist

Anyone can say anything. It's easy to yap.

That's the primary issue with philosophy.

It's easy to say, don't worry so much, focus on the present. Practice Stoicism and meditation. Be a genuinely kind person, help others. Morals, feelings, blah blah.

And then you gotta quote drop: "Life is like a flame, it doesn't last long, so embrace the warmth."

See, I'm kinda good at this. I'ma be a professional yapper.

But I understand this issue with philosophy and the self-help community. All of these things are just words. Actually implementing these ideas into your day-to-day life is tricky. Saying something like you should practice gratitude is cool on paper, but when your DoorDash order arrives 20 minutes late, you start to question why gratitude exists in the first place.

There's a bigger risk when consuming philosophical and self-help content. It feels good, but you do nothing. People can get into a rhythm of constantly watching random videos of a guy talking into his mic in nature, and the viewer feels like he's transcending as a person, when after the video ends = he opens Career Mode on EAFC 27. Let me be.

I understand the point. It becomes an addiction, it becomes a bad habit, and it also stagnates you because watching the content and doing nothing about it is pointless.

I have a unique hot take about content like this: I think even if you do nothing while watching it, it's still a win in my book.

The reason is because the world is negative.

People are constantly afraid of global warming, money, taxes, the job crisis, relationships, AI, physique, trying to optimize hobbies, and figuring out the future right now.

Life is already rough, but the worst thing is not being able to allow yourself to breathe and figure out what to do.

I was playing some Minecraft before going to bed, and I had one of these videos playing in the background while I got blown up by a creeper.

This video was one of the most calming things I've ever watched, so much so that I didn't even get mad when the creeper RKO'd me. I think this was an influential video because a lot of people my age tend to think they are behind because of job placement, relationship status, and even social perception. But there was a key phrase that sounded so simple and stuck with me:

"Be your age."

You have 23-year-olds trying to act 55, and kids in high school trying to map out their whole lives. Since I am a master's student, having a job is essential, but I also realize that constantly focusing on that can be kind of isolating, and you don't have stories to tell. It's not about being a bum, but also about being yourself. Why do you want to put an enormous amount of pressure on yourself to fit the norm when you can be a little more risk-oriented and focus on your hobbies or building a project?

When you are 35, you will still be thinking about all those things: family planning, investing, thinking about switching careers.

In a blog post I recently wrote called Both Sides, I say that it's really hard to choose a path because both sides make sense. Working hard right now makes sense, but enjoying your life also makes sense. But watching a cowboy drop philosophical knowledge while a horse chills in the background changed my viewpoint slightly.

I'll never be 22 again. Why am I trying to be a 33-year-old man doing all the boring things right now?

I remember the exact moment I watched this video. I was in my bed during senior year, bored, trying to go to sleep, and I couldn't find anything to watch before bed. It was annoying. I watched the same shows over and over again. I felt like my nighttime routine was so boring, filled with reels and trying to find videos on YouTube that weren't brainrot or boring.

This video came up on my feed, and I saw that it had a lot of views. I don't remember the number, but now the video is at 20 million views, which is not really aligned with the type of video it is. A neurosurgeon who quit to find himself.

The guy swatting a billion flies while telling everyone that he wasn't fulfilled is really funny.

What resonates with me is that a lot of times we don't really understand our goals in life.

When you genuinely try to figure out what you want to do, you start having doubts and sometimes filter out certain possibilities. There are tons of people who genuinely want to work in finance, healthcare, or become a teacher because, for them, it's fulfilling. However, sometimes you think you want something not because the career or job itself is fulfilling, but because of the prize or recognition. Working at Jane Street, becoming a surgeon, becoming a rapper, all of these can be genuine goals, but they can also be artificial.

A common quote I've seen a lot on the internet and in the comment section of this video is: "A man has two lives. The first one starts when he is born. The second life starts when he realizes he only has one."

Yes, it sounds tuff. Everyone follows the same path: high school, university, job, marriage, kids, retire. People are now more comfortable deviating from that path, but that can also become performative. Just because you don't have a 9-to-5, it doesn't automatically mean you have a more fulfilling life. There are tons of people who like being a SWE at Datadog. There are tons of people who like making $80k selling cars.

The tricky part is knowing when you are doing something for some grand artificial reason, like trying to get other people to admire you, getting approval from peers and family, or thinking that once you hit a milestone, you'll finally feel happy.

It's been a while since I last saw the video, but it mainly talks about how he doesn't believe in the healthcare system because it's based on trying to treat problems with surgeries instead of promoting healing through things like stress management and diet.

I haven't had a proper full-time job yet, as I've only done co-ops and internships, but I can see how that can become disheartening.

I know a lot of people in this world are money-centric. It makes sense, you need money to survive. But some people are just more complicated, and logical thinkers might not understand it. If you want to make a boatload of money, you can choose the engineering, doctor, or investment banker path without even knowing if you are going to cross certain lines. You might be making a living by increasing shareholder value for companies that might be exploiting their workers.

Corporations and jobs aren't here for ethics. They're here to make money. This doesn't mean every company is evil like Dr. Doofenshmirtz evil Incorporated from Phineas and Ferb.

But maybe when you are four years into a job, you start realizing what your day-to-day life has been contributing to. You realize that $200k a year isn't worth it... or maybe it still is for some people.

The world loves to strip away purpose, promote the end goal, and maybe even influence people to go into certain roles because they feel like they are making a difference, when maybe they aren't, like the surgeon.

This video is very straightforward. Be your authentic self 100%, leave everything behind, and allow yourself to be you.

It's really hard to become a better person. It's really hard to move forward without constantly trying to hold onto who you used to be.

The interesting concept from this video is that you have to let your past self go in order to become the person you were meant to be.

He talks a lot about manifestation. I personally think that's kinda ehh. I understand trying to surround yourself with positive messages and videos like this, but manifestation doesn't really mean anything if you don't do the work.

You can't become the person you were meant to be without first messing up, without first being the thing you despised.

I was recently watching Joe Bartolozzi reacting to a documentary about himself. He first gained fame by making those annoying, irritating TikToks that got millions of views. It's what started his career. It's funny because he doesn't like that version of himself. He constantly watches those videos and feels like punching himself, his words, not mine.

But then he got into a relationship, started getting into philosophy, and started making content about mental health. He transformed and became a better person, but would that have happened if he didn't get 20 million followers on TikTok first? Would that have happened if he didn't have an ego at 19 years old? If he wasn't a narcissist first before becoming a person who thinks more about others?

This video about letting yourself go represents letting the version of yourself who may have been a "bad" person go. It's not just about being a "bad" person. It could mean when you were younger, you didn't take care of your physique, didn't care about other people, or didn't care about your own actions. But what if those actions led you to become an amazing person?

In this video, he mentions the light and dark aspect. For there to be light, you need darkness. Can you just be filled with light at a young age and be a perfect person from the start? Idk, maybe. But most people aren't like that because our brains aren't fully developed. You get more mature. You start seeing things differently.

It's a contradiction. You being the thing you despise helped you become the person you are, or the person you will become.

So let yourself go.

With videos like these, you can always give the boring answer: use them in moderation, or not everything is that deep. It might have some merit, but even if it's just positive yap, I'd rather hear that than constant negativity.