Meaning and the good life

Self-knowledge and personal growth Relationships, work and leisure Values and ethical living

Bioethics Civic life Cultural diversity Ethics Fairness and equality Human rights and justice Meaning and the good life Nature and the environment Neurodiversity Progress and the future Race and ethnicity Values and beliefs Virtues and vices Wisdom

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Impressionist painting of a family in a garden, with a child learning to walk, assisted by an adult, as another adult crouches down with outstretched arms.

Values and beliefs

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A philosophical approach can help you identify what truly matters

We’re often taught to live according to our values, but this is easier said than done without pausing to reflect deeply

by Valerie Tiberius

A woman in an orange sweater is practising her golf swing in a narrow, cobblestone alleyway lined with bicycles, adjacent to a building with large windows.

Play

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The achievement society is burning us out, we need more play

This is about more than a self-help switch – it will take structural changes to reject capitalism’s productivity obsession

by Alec Stubbs

A person hugs two young children near a brick wall in a garden, with plants and greenery around them.

Caregiving

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How to get the most out of caregiving

Giving care is hard, but it’s one of the most meaningful things you can do. Here’s how to change up your perspective

by Elissa Strauss

A rake with a wooden handle rakes through sand dunes, its trail mixing with shadows from a line of multicoloured flags.

Meaning and the good life

film

An artist captures the joys of solitude amid a month living in a beach shack

Directed by Lynne Sachs

Man at an office desk with multiple monitors, working on spreadsheets, a large mountain mural on the wall in front of him.

Work and vocation

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Why do so many people think they are in a bullshit job?

Researchers continue to debate whether some jobs are inherently useless – but all agree it’s harmful to see your job this way

by Shayla Love

A couple sits on a ledge overlooking a city and harbour at twilight, sharing an umbrella.

Meaning and the good life

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You can be a materialist and find meaning in the universe

My hard-nosed materialism led me to an existential crisis, but then I realised the difference between science and scientism

by Jessica Tracy

A clear glass, half-filled with water, placed on a wooden surface. The background is a plain, soft beige. The image has a warm, sepia tone.

Meaning and the good life

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How to appreciate what you have

To better face an imperfect world, try a deeper reflection on the things, people and legacies that make your life possible

by Avram Alpert

Silhouette of a person surrounded by a burst of white, glowing particles against a dark background.

Dissociation and detachment

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Using his body as a canvas, Jean-François recalls getting lost in unreality

Directed by Jean-François Boisvenue

Hands sculpting a small, rough clay figure of a person’s head and torso against a blurred background.

The self

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When Nietzsche said ‘become who you are’, this is what he meant

Behind the philosopher’s cryptic phrase is an invocation to sculpt your ideal self out of the hard stone of your psyche

by Ryan A Bush

A painting of a man with long hair wearing a black outfit and hat, holding a lit cigarette, and sitting in a café with a glass of green liquid.

Thinkers and theories

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Learning to be a loser: a philosopher’s case for doing nothing

For Emil Cioran, a life devoid of action, practical ambitions and busyness is a life in which room has been made for meaning

by Costica Bradatan

Painting of an elderly man with a white beard, shirtless, looking upwards with a dark, textured background.

Thinkers and theories

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How to live like a Cynic

Take inspiration from Diogenes, the philosopher in a barrel, and transform your negativity into a liberating force for good

by Ansgar Allen

Abstract orange background with two stick figures amidst geometric shapes and lines.

Progress and the future

film

Stick figures meet existential angst in this acclaimed, darkly comedic short

Directed by Don Hertzfeldt