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Socrates lived between 469 and 399 B.C.E.
and he is one of the most famous philosophers

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in the entire history of humankind.

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He is sometimes considered as the founder
of the Western philosophy and his work reflects

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the philosophy of Skepticism, which has as
its main base that knowledge can be obtained

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through systematic doubt and continual testing.

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Although Socrates hasn't written anything,
he has forever changed philosophy itself.

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Most of the things we know today about his
philosophy came from Plato, Aristophanes and

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Xenophon whose writings are in the form of
dialogues between Socrates and other Athenians.

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These writings gave birth to a new literary
genre called the Socratic dialogue.

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Unfortunately, he is also famous for his tragic
life.

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In 399 BCE, he was accused of corrupting the
youth of Athens and of failing to acknowledge

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the city's official gods.

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After a trial that lasted just a single day,
he was sentenced to death.

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He spent his last day in prison, refusing
to escape.

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The way his life ended can be considered as
the founding myth of philosophy as a discipline.

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For one to really practice philosophy, they
have to go against societal norms, to question

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everything even at the risk of their own peril.

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Everything about Socrates was impressive:
his appearance, personality, and behaviour,

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as well as in his views and methods.

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And this made many of the people around him
to write about him, including Plato.

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It is unfortunate that Socrates did not write
at all and all we have is indirect evidence.

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Also, it is said that each age produces a
Socrates of its own, however there are some

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core fundamental teachings of the original
Socrates that transcend the centuries and

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to help you better understand his teachings
and how to implement them into your own life,

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in this video we bring you 9 life lessons
we can learn from the philosophy of Socrates:

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1.

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Open yourself to the truth
Socrates said: “The only true wisdom is

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in knowing you know nothing…”

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This quote is one of the most famous quotes
of all time.

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It is also called the Socratic paradox.

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It was called a paradox because such a statement
of Socrates seems contrary to common sense.

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This quote is a reply of Socrates to the Oracle
of Delphi which stated that “Socrates is

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the wisest” and Socrates replied to this
statement by saying that he is wise because

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he knows nothing.

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He simply considered that he didn’t know
what the truth was.

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Truth is that which is in accordance with
fact or reality and Socrates was very famous

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for developing a mental model for seeking
truth, calling it elenchus, also known as

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the Socratic method, consisting in analyzing
all the elements of an argument, to understand

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the hypotheses on which the argument is constructed,
to see if these hypotheses are based on facts

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and if they are valid.

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Thus, according to Socrates, we can pursue
the truth by constantly asking questions to

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others and digging deeper into problems and
thought experiments.

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His teachings are extremely valuable even
today when we need so much to develop our

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critical thinking in how we analyze our life
or society in general.

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If we just eat, sleep, work and procreate,
we are no better than any other animal.

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In Socrates’s view, such a life would not
be worth living.

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It is important to never stop learning new
things, asking questions, and developing ourselves

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and to never assume that once you know something,
it is enough.

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You need to always question what you know
as a fact, seek evidence, and refresh your

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knowledge constantly.

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For example, imagine that you are working
in an engineering department and you are informed

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that you have to follow a certain design methodology,
but you don’t understand the reasons why.

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Instead of just working by following orders,
you should better apply the Socratic method:

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ask your boss as many questions as possible
to fully understand why this method is as

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it is, who proved that it is really the best
and what methods that person used.

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If you find the explanation unsatisfactory,
you might even propose a new designing method

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and you can increase the quality of the design
overall.

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Don’t just follow orders and pretend that
you know what you are doing.

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Only through acknowledging that you do not
know something, are you in a position to ask

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others questions to find out more, thereby
developing your knowledge and skills, and

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by extension, improve your career.

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2.

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Be courageous
According to Socrates: “He is a man of courage

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who does not run away, but remains at his
post and fights against the enemy.”

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Socrates was a contrarian and a polarising
figure.

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Not only through his looks and behaviour,
but also through his way of interrogating

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people around him, and because he did not
acknowledge the official gods.

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Due to this, in 399 BCE he was arrested for
corrupting the youth and brought to trial

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which lasted just a single day.

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In the end, he was sentenced to death.

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In spite of being offered the possibility
to escape, he decided to remain in prison

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before his tragic death.

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He died by drinking poison hemlock.

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Certainly, Socrates was a man of great courage
until the day he died.

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During his life, he was never afraid to go
against the current of Athenian opinion, he

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was seeking the real truths behind the common
beliefs, he refused to believe in the gods,

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he refused to be part of the political arena.

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No matter the cost, we need to stand up for
our moral principles.

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For example, when your boss at work asks you
to betray one of your colleagues, you should

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refuse it even at the risk of getting fired;
when you are at a family reunion and you catch

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an old relative saying something racist or
bigoted, you have to speak up and start a

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tough conversation with the people involved.

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Remaining silent when you have to speak up
and obeying unjust orders means partnering

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with the abuser or with the criminal and causing
harm to innocent people.

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Courage is not only a desirable trait we need
to have, but it is the mark of any moral human

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being.

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3.

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Be authentic
To quote Socrates: “The greatest way to

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live with honour in this world is to be what
we pretend to be.”

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Socrates never shied away from proclaiming
his views, no matter the danger.

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He did not take sides in politics, he was
far more interested in seeking the truth than

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in political and social status.

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Ultimately, his stubbornness to be who he
really was, led him to trial and premature

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death.

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But, due to the fact that he had the courage
to be authentic, to question everything publicly,

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he lived honourably and his fame has lasted
to this day.

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Socrates was also bold enough to proclaim
his ignorance towards many subjects.

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He did not hesitate to ask others questions
in order to find the truth.

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Even in regards to physical appearance, he
did not polish himself, to look more than

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he was.

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Most of us do not have the courage that Socrates
had, but we can learn from him to be more

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straightforward, more honest, to better align
our ideal of ourselves with who we truly are.

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This means to stop seeking the approval of
other people, to stop dressing and behaving

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to impress others in order to be seen as we
would like them to see us.

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It is much better instead to work more in
shaping our character than in lying and deceiving

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others in regard to who we truly are.

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If you are not happy about how you look, work
on building muscles or losing weight instead

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of buying clothes to try and fake it.

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Stop pretending to be who you are not and
use that energy to start the real work on

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addressing the main sources of the problems,
and only then you can be the authentic version

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of yourself.

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4.

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Be humble
Socrates tells us: “Pride divides the men,

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humility joins them.”

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It is said that Socrates had an unpleasant
appearance: he was short, with a big belly,

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with rough facial features, bulging eyes,
and a snubbed nose.

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He was extremely mocked due to his looks,
but he didn’t seem to care that much.

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He continued to use the same cloak every day,
living a poor life, not caring either for

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his hygiene or for eating and drinking well.

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However, also because of his humble appearance,
he was able to speak with people from all

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walks of life, whomever he was finding in
the marketplace or other public areas, male

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or female, young or old, slave or free, rich
or poor.

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His humility gave him a special freedom and
many possibilities to interact with different

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types of people.

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Although only a few of us would want to look
like Socrates and adopt such an austere lifestyle,

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we can still adopt some aspects of his humility
in order to be more free and to be able to

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experience life more fully.

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Humility means first of all freedom from pride
and arrogance.

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The bigger your status in society, the more
you need to practice humility.

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If, for example, you are a manager in a factory,
you need an amount of humility to talk to

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employees working under you and listen to
their suggestions on how to improve teamwork.

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If you adopt an arrogant and demanding attitude,
you will deprive yourself of a valuable input

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from your subordinates.

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If you want your staff to respect you, you
have to respect them equally.

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They are the creators, the ones actually performing
the primary functions of the business, giving

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them unique, valuable insight you can’t
see from a management or executive-level perspective.

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If your staff feel like they are truly valued
and respected, they will generally want to

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return that respect with delivering to their
best abilities.

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Only when you have created such a connection,
will they open up to you and give valuable

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feedback which you can use to improve the
working methods in your factory.

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The more humble we are, the more approachable
we are and, and thus, the better our connection

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with others, leading to more, better opportunities.

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5.

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Beware the busyness of life

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In the words of Socrates: “Beware the barrenness
of a busy life.”

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In the late fifth century B.C.E., when Socrates
lived, most of the Athenian men preferred

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fame, wealth, honors, and political power
to a life of labor.

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They always seemed to have a busy life, but
not a happy one.

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By contrast, Socrates neither laboured to
earn a living, nor participated voluntarily

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in affairs of state.

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Rather, in spite of his popularity, he chose
to remain in poverty.

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He was not even interested in being considered
a teacher.

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He believed it was more important to teach
people to think by themselves than to fill

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their memories with new things that they may
not even use.

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Doing things just for money or for fame was
not one of his interests as he understood

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that living a life without a real purpose
is an empty life.

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Following Socrates’ example, we should all
be careful not to have a busy and empty life,

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but rather a meaningful life.

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Nowadays, there are so many activities we
can engage in, so many things to choose from.

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If we don’t know how to limit our desires
for more money, more things, more fame, we

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risk the possibility that we completely fill
our time with activities, leaving no time

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to stop and process, to digest everything
going on in our life, to find the meaning

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and make better, considered decisions going
forward.

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Running after money and fame won’t give
us real meaning in our lives.

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All it does is cost time and energy - both
of which can be better spent doing things

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that actually fulfil you - things you really
enjoy.

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You don’t have to try to do everything you
are capable of doing in life.

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Just start by figuring out what is really
meaningful to you and prioritise your activities

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accordingly.

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Life can only become meaningful when you do
meaningful activities.

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6.

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Be a citizen of the world
Socrates stated: “I am not an Athenian or

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a Greek, but a citizen of the world."

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We should not be defined by artificial borders
like the geographical border of our country.

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People should not be just citizens of their
state, they should be citizens of the world.

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Now more than ever there are many more things
that unite us than separate us.

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Unfortunately, we humans typically think of
ourselves in small groups - Our block or street,

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our town, our county or state, our country...

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If the internet has taught us nothing else,
it has taught us that we might have more in

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common with someone thousands of miles away
than you do your own neighbour.

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We are all human beings.

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No more, no less.

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And making judgements about a fellow human
based on differences like nationality, skin

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colour, gender or in fact anything other than
their behaviour and actions is utterly nonsensical.

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Socrates understood this very well, even though
at that time, this idea was truly revolutionary.

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Greece was divided into many smaller states
like Athens and Sparta and there were many

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wars between them.

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But Socrates was not a fan of politics, he
refused to take sides with one party or another,

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he was more interested in finding an objective
truth than in a subjective one - or in aligning

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himself with a certain group of people.

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In the same way, we should be interested more
in the common moral principles which connect

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us than in the apparent differences between
us.

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If you meet someone from another country,
from another culture, do not focus on how

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different they dress from you, or how they
behave and think, but rather focus on the

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physical and psychological needs you have
in common: to have enough food to eat, a shelter

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over your head, to feel you are part of a
community, to feel secure, to take care of

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your family and so on.

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All humans on this planet have the same basic
needs and this is the common ground from which

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we should engage with one another.

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We are all citizens of this world.

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7.

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Be happy with less
Socrates posits that: “The secret of happiness,

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you see, is not found in seeking more, but
in developing the capacity to enjoy less.”

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Happiness is by definition an end goal of
our desires.

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Happiness is not a given, it requires a certain
effort.

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And the fewer desires we have, the easier
it is to achieve happiness.

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Socrates believed that the real secret to
happiness is to have a moral life, to be just.

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By being so, you can be more peaceful, more
content with your current affairs and desire

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fewer possessions.

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Thus, happiness is not a result of having
more, it is more a result of a mindset, of

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the ability to enjoy the small things in life.

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We need to work more on our inner state of
mind, rather than trying to possess as many

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things as possible, like money, property,
cars and so on.

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An easy way to introduce more happiness into
our life is through making small changes every

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day.

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You can start by practicing meditation, taking
a short walk after lunch to the nearest park,

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taking part in sport, writing a diary, connecting
with your friends and relatives, even something

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as simple as watching your favourite comedy
and so on.

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Over time you can introduce more new habits,
which cumulatively can increase your level

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of happiness.

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Do not expect a new apartment, a new car or
even winning the lottery to make you happy.

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Real happiness requires less effort than you
might expect - it usually consists of developing

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small habits you can follow and build on every
day.

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By being a moral person and focusing on practicing
healthy habits every day, you can be happy

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with surprisingly little effort.

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8.

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Don’t seek vengeance
As we learn from Socrates: “One should never

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do wrong in return, nor mistreat any man,
no matter how one has been mistreated by him.”

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For Socrates, vengeance is by definition unjust
and there is never a good motivation to justify

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it.

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This philosophy on vengeance is expressed
in one of the dialogues of Plato, where Socrates

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debates Polemarchus, who believes that if
it is just to give each man what is owed,

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so to it is just to do good for a good friend
and to do harm to an enemy.

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Socrates made Polemarchus realize that when
harmed, human beings tend to become less virtuous,

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not more.

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So while it may be cathartic to ‘balance
the scales’ by acting on the ancient expression

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‘an eye for an eye’, the net result is
that you drive your enemies towards further

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immorality.

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Harming someone makes neither you nor them
a better person.

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Thus, vengeance is never justified.

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No matter how bad someone hurts you, you need
to calmly reply and walk away.

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It can be your best friend who betrayed you,
it can be someone who spread false rumours

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about you in public, your partner who cheated
on you, or your boss who unfairly criticized

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you.

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No matter what, you need to calmly evaluate
the situation: If appropriate - express your

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hurt feelings in a polite way, demand a correction
or apology and, if this is not possible, pack

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your bags and walk away.

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Do not do the same thing to the other person,
do not sink down to their level.

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Instead, maintain your humanity, defend yourself,
claim an apology or walk away.

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9.

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Have a sense of humour
In our final quote from Socrates for this

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video, he says: “By all means marry; if
you get a good wife, you’ll become happy;

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if you get a bad one, you’ll become a philosopher.”

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Socrates was well known for his sense of humour.

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He was often making jokes about his wife Xanthippe,
who was 30 years younger than him, explaining

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that she had a bad temper and a difficult
personality, suggesting that he became a philosopher

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due to this issue and that the marriage with
her is a great school in dealing with difficult

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situations.

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They even had an argument when she visited
him in prison, before his death.

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She was crying, saying that he was condemned
unfairly and he joked about it saying: “Would

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you think this situation was less regrettable
if they had condemned me fairly?”.

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Perhaps we can all implement a bit of Socratic
humour in our own lives.

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No matter the situation, good or bad, making
jokes can lighten up other people and us.

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Laughter is a powerful tool which can bring
people closer, when used carefully, without

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malevolence or bad intentions.

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Laughter releases stress, and makes us more
resilient against the daily difficulties of

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life.

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Studies have shown a relationship is more
likely to last if the partners find the same

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things funny.

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To make your relationships long-lasting, to
quote the comedian Reginald D Hunter, “you

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have to find the funnies”, whether that’s
finding shows, movies or comedians you both

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enjoy or seeing the same humour in life’s
situations, a good joke, said without bad

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intentions, can light up the spirits and create
truly memorable moments.

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If you enjoyed this video, please make sure
to check out our full philosophies for life

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00:24:21,980 --> 00:24:27,660
playlist and for more videos to help you find
success and happiness using ancient philosophical

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00:24:27,660 --> 00:24:30,610
wisdom, don’t forget to subscribe.

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Thanks so much for watching.