Take pause for a moment to consider what it might be like to be the captain of a small ship lost at sea with broken navigation equipment and no land in sight. In such a context, you are apt to experience heightened. fear, stress, and anxiety and are likely to ponder three questions. Where am I? How did I get here? Which way should I go? Just like the captain of the ship, as human beings we face the exact same challenging questions as it relates to the course of our lives. We desperately want to avoid the feeling of being lost in the universe and suffering from the fears and anxieties that accompany that uncertainty. And just as it is with the ship captain, we depend on navigation equipment to set a course for ourselves and give our lives direction. Our navigation equipment are the beliefs and values from which we make choices and give our lives purpose and direction.
Most of us inherit our navigation equipment in the form of the beliefs and values that we learn from our parents, our education systems, our religious institutions, and our life experiences. We are socialized to avoid the fears and anxieties associated with feeling lost and willingly accept the answers that we are given, whether or not they are true, and regardless of whether they serve our best interests. We are easily persuaded that the promise of comfort, certainty, belonging, and direction are programmed into us as children and are welcome substitutes for fear and anxiety associated with feeling lost. And we find ourselves in good company with all those around us who are equally enamored with reassuring beliefs. We become content to let other people program the course of our lives and we remain oblivious to the price we pay for that privilege.
But those of us with inquisitive minds are not so reassured by this prospect. We are not content to ride on any ship in any direction and we do not consider it beneficial to cede responsibility for our navigation equipment to other people who seek to control our destiny. Contrary to traditional teachings, each of us is entitled to our own life direction and are capable of reasoning through out own moral choices provided that we accept the responsibility that it entails. And so it is that we have three choices in life. We can be lost and anxiety ridden, we can live in accordance with the direction of other people and the institutional beliefs they imbibe, or we can learn to develop our own beliefs and values and guide our own lives.
Historically, in the absence of scientific truths, conforming to traditional beliefs and values and fitting in with the expectations of a society provided a stable and predictable existence. Most jobs were labor oriented, careers lasted a life time, and communities were homogeneous. Today, knowledge of science and technology is essential, the pace of change is unprecedented, and integration is widespread. Survival and prosperity demands critical thinking, flexibility, and continuous learning. Never before has it been so important to build a philosophy that enable one to navigate the world and shape the life they choose to experience.
Create A Philosophy 