Examine men’s ruling principles, even those of the wise, what kind of things they avoid, and what kind they pursue.

Posted on 8 August 2016 by philosiblog

Examine men’s ruling principles, even those of the wise, what kind of things they avoid, and what kind they pursue. – Marcus Aurelius

examine discuss

Examine their principles, values and motives. You will eventually have that discussion. Sooner or later.

What does that mean?
To me, this is about choosing friends, acquaintances and associates. It asks who they are, and by extension, if they are the kind of people you want to be around.

What are the forces, the values and principles which guide them? In some particular situation, how will they respond and what will they do? Consider what they like to do and what they try not to do.

The implied question in the quote is “are they right for you?” Will they be the kind of person with whom you wish to be associated? Will they give you the help and advice you need, or are their aims different from yours?

Why is it important to examine others? Continue reading →

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If you desire to make a difference in the world, you must be different from the world.

Posted on 1 August 2016 by philosiblog

If you desire to make a difference in the world, you must be different from the world. – Elaine S. Dalton

different

Yes, one is different. But why? What are they trying to do, how are they trying to change things?

What does that mean?
How much change will happen if everyone is the same? If everyone thinks the same, acts the same, and no one is different, how can change happen at all?

That is the underlying question of question posed by the quote. If everyone is the same, how will the world change, or even know that change is possible or desirable?

It is stated in the positive, stating that if you want to change to occur, you will have to be different from the others, that they might see you and be influenced.

To influence the world to change, you have to show it a new or better way. The same goes for smaller groups, such as friends, family, and those around you.

Why is being different important? Continue reading →

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Every step you take, is a step away from where you used to be.

Posted on 25 July 2016 by philosiblog

Every step you take, is a step away from where you used to be. – Brian Chargualaf

step

We all take steps, and move from where we were, but do you have a direction, a destination?

What does that mean?
Each day, we move. We take steps, we evolve, we change, we learn. Each of those steps changes us in some small way. Each step makes us a little different than we were before.

But different from what? What we used to be. Because we are now different. Usually in a small way, but sometimes in ways that are more profound or drastic than others can imagine.

What we become is largely dependent on how we respond to these changes. We can take them in a positive direction and grow from them, or we can be devastated by them. It is our choice, our life. Choose with wisdom.

Why is noticing the step you take important? Continue reading →

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Money is human happiness in the abstract.

Posted on 18 July 2016 by philosiblog

Money is human happiness in the abstract. – Schopenhauer

happiness

Concrete, real happiness is as close as your friends. They’ve been friends for at least 6 years.

What does that mean?
The longer version of the quote (included at the bottom of the post) goes on to state that once one can no longer be happy, in concrete form, the person will focus solely on money.

Happiness comes to humans in many forms. A pleasant day, a warm smile from a friend, or the scent of your favorite food hanging in the air.

Money can buy one of those three examples. But when you no longer care about the weather, have alienated all your friends, and can no longer truly enjoy food, art or music, to what do you turn?

Money is the abstract form of happiness, in that when you have enough money, you can buy many things to make you happy. But focusing on the money, and not the happiness all around us, can be problematic.

Why is concrete happiness important? Continue reading →

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Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.

Posted on 11 July 2016 by philosiblog

Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous. – Confucius

Learning and Thought

I thought about, and then took apart a few clocks before I learned enough to put them back together.

What does that mean?
This quote is about the synergy between knowledge and ideas of how to do things. Learning brings knowledge. Thought brings ideas of how to do things.

Knowledge of how to do something without actually giving any consideration to how to accomplish this is an investment of time in pure knowledge. In the quote’s time period, few could afford to waste their time.

Entertaining ideas of how to do something without any idea how to actually do it is a recipe for disaster, especially if one acts on those uneducated impulses. Read a book on mountaineering? Nah, let’s just climb it!

But together, and in balance, learning and thought give us a great way by which we can get things done. And that allows us to get it done with little wasted time or danger to self or others.

Why are both learning and thought important? Continue reading →

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Don’t let the darkness from your past block the light of joy in your present.

Posted on 20 June 2016 by philosiblog

Don’t let the darkness from your past block the light of joy in your present. – Karen Salmansohn

joy

Children are so full of joy. How do we as adults manage to forget about letting go and enjoying life?

What does that mean?
This quote, to me, is about keeping the past in the past. It warns us against allowing the darkness, presumably a metaphor for less than helpful feelings, thoughts and emotions, to encroach on our present.

The quote also implies that the darkness can overshadow or block the light, presumably a metaphor for best feelings, thoughts and emotions, in our present. It warns about allowing the past to infringe on our present.

The quote also implies that we have some choice, some control over what the darkness of our past does to us in the present. We can allow it to diminish our joy, or we can keep ourselves strong and draw a line and not let it cross.

Why is taking joy important? Continue reading →

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Be here now. Be somewhere else later. Is that so complicated?

Posted on 16 June 2016 by philosiblog

Be here now. Be somewhere else later. Is that so complicated? – David Bader

present

Is he present, or is he somewhere else? Somewhere far, far away… What is he missing while his mind and his focus is elsewhere?

What does that mean?
This quote is about the fundamentals of Zen, at least as I understand it. Being present. Where are you and where is your mind, your focus and your energy?

This quote reminds us to be here in our mind, our focus and our energy. Where ever “here” might be. Right now, be united in all our aspects, not scattered.

Later, when we are elsewhere, that is where our mind, our focus and our energy should be. But not until we get there. It really isn’t complicated to explain.

However, for me, it is quite hard. I’m used to multitasking and being everywhere else but here, when I am here. So easy to say, so easy to understand, yet (for me at least) so hard to do.

Why is being present important? Continue reading →

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Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.

Posted on 13 June 2016 by philosiblog

Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. – Mother Teresa

kind words

“Hey, nice party…” Is she in a good emotional state? What kind of echos is she making? Be kind anyway.

What does that mean?
Hello. Thank you. That’s nice. I’m happy for you. You’re welcome. All these are kind words, as are many others. It costs you next to nothing to share such kindness with another person.

If you have been using them regularly for any length of time, you know what impact they can have on others. If you have had them used on you recently, you know how the ripples can spread through your life and into the lives of others.

And each kind word starts it’s own ripple. The person saying it to you, you saying it to someone else, them saying it to yet another person. Each kind word has its own ripple, and they can go on for quite a while.

Why are kind words important? Continue reading →

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Being concerned about others does not mean you forgo fulfilling your own needs, but that if you do help others there is mutual benefit.

Posted on 9 June 2016 by philosiblog

Being concerned about others does not mean you forgo fulfilling your own needs, but that if you do help others there is mutual benefit. – Dalai Lama

concerned helping

How much does it really take to help another? What do they get from it, and what do you get?

What does that mean?
The quote starts out by reminding us that being concerned with others, and the action implied therein, isn’t supposed to be to the exclusion of our own needs.

It concludes that helping others generates a mutual benefit, which I read to imply that we are to look for ways to help others while also helping ourselves.

To me, this distinction is important, as many consider helping others to be a form of self-sacrifice. I believe this attitude causes some to discount the helping of others as being something which requires too much for them to do.

This need not be the case, as the quote implies. We can find ways of helping others and still help ourselves at the same time.

Why is being concerned about others important? Continue reading →

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Worry is a misuse of imagination.

Posted on 6 June 2016 by philosiblog

Worry is a misuse of imagination. – Dan Zadra

imagination worry

She looks worried. Can she change it? Then she should do something about it. If not, she should find something else to do. Either way, worry has no good use.

What does that mean?
This quote, sometimes with a “the” in place of “a,” is about the close relationship between worry and imagination, and the implications of that closeness.

Our imaginations are wonderful and powerful forces in our lives. As kids, we use our imaginations to go all sorts of places, and do many different things.

When we watch TV, go to see a movie, or read a book, that is our imagination taking us to new and wonderful places. But if it’s a scary book or movie, it can take us to dark places.

Worry is much like that. It is our imagination taking us to some of the worst possible places, and envision the worst possible outcomes. While that still is our imagination, the quote states that it is not the best possible use of it.

Why is proper use of our imagination important? Continue reading →

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It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.

Posted on 2 June 2016 by philosiblog

It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live. – Marcus Aurelius

live alive

Is this T-Shirt an attitude, part of living a full life, or just a Monty Python Quote? Is there a difference?

What does that mean?
While this appears to be an interesting German to English translation, the core of the quote remains the same, and a longer version is included at the bottom of the post.

The quote is about the time of death, and how it isn’t proper to fear it. Life comes and life goes. As birth begins our journey, so death is at the other end of the line. There isn’t anything to fear.

Instead, the quote urges us to consider whether we have truly lived at all, or if we have simply existed for some time. It implies we should live “according to nature” which is his way of saying do it properly.

The longer quote finishes with the thought that those who have truly lived will be worthy of the universe which has created them. A very nice thought.

Why is remembering to live important? Continue reading →

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Those who haven’t committed to mastery have resigned themselves to mediocrity.

Posted on 30 May 2016 by philosiblog

Those who haven’t committed to mastery have resigned themselves to mediocrity. – Robin Sharma

Mastery

He’s tired of Chess. He’s probably not willing to master it, so he will have to be content with mediocrity.

What does that mean?
While I am not usually fond of dichotomies, this could be easily be rephrased as “those who haven’t committed to mastery have resigned themselves to be something less.”

In either case, your choice is clear, you either have to commit to mastering a subject or skill, or live with the fact that you will never be a master of it. Which is fine, you can still have fun even if you’re not a master.

But what is mastery? At the highest level, a master is world-class, one of a handful of people who are at that level. At the smaller scale, it’s someone you go to with your questions.

And the mediocre? Well, that’s everybody else. For the purposes of the dichotomy, the word was probably chosen for the contrast and unease it causes. But it applies to everyone else besides the master.

Why is mastery important? Continue reading →

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Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive.

Posted on 26 May 2016 by philosiblog

Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive. – Elbert Hubbard

seriously

Just some friends out having fun. What is too serious, what isn’t, and what does balanced mean to you?

What does that mean?
Too many people seem to take life so very seriously. This quote advises us against that path, urging us to loosen up a little bit and have some fun.

Why, you ask? The quote says because no one gets out alive. And that is true, all who are born will eventually die. So what is to be gained by being overly serious?

The quote implies that nothing is to be gained by taking life too seriously. It’s not a game you will win, after all. There is no special prize for the most serious player.

Instead, the quote implies that we should relax and have some fun while living. Be serious when it is required, but not all the time. Enjoy yourself.

Why is not taking life too seriously important? Continue reading →

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One kind word can warm three winter months.

Posted on 23 May 2016 by philosiblog

One kind word can warm three winter months. – Japanese Proverb

kind

Being kind may not be ‘your cup of tea,’ but it might be worth trying, for the warmth it gives everyone.

What does that mean?
This quote, like many metaphors, has much to imply. Starting with the core of it, the one kind word.

The one kind word is the nice thing you say to a loved one, a friend, a neighbor, or even a complete stranger. It might be more than one word, or it might just be a gesture or even a smile.

Three months of winter, in the parts of the world outside the tropics, is quite a thing to experience. The cold can be anywhere from annoying to life-threatening.

It is this that the kind word can warm. In reality, it does nothing to the actual temperature of those winter months, but it’s a metaphor, so it doesn’t have to. It just needs to warm you heart a little.

Why is a kind word important? Continue reading →

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Be patient and tough; someday this pain will be useful to you.

Posted on 19 May 2016 by philosiblog

Be patient and tough; someday this pain will be useful to you. – Ovid

pain

Pain can help us learn valuable lessons, if we let it. Be patient and be tough, and you will find the lesson.

What does that mean?
This Latin verse has also translated as “Have patience and endure; this unhappiness will one day be beneficial.” I have been unable to locate a more complete section of the work from which to gather more context.

However, both translations of the quote tell us that the trouble and difficulty we are presently experiencing will eventually pass. It also reminds us that at some point, it will prove useful to us in some way.

It isn’t always obvious, but lessons can be learned from every experience, no matter how painful or absurd. It is up to us to figure out the proper point to learn in each case. And it will be useful some day.

Why is enduring pain important? Continue reading →

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