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Build Yourself A Coherent Personal Philosophy

Grant Piper
6 min readMay 6, 2020

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You won’t be disappointed with the results

Photo by Mike Gorrell on Unsplash

There is a distinct difference between being a part of a group that thinks a certain way and having a personal philosophy. As the 21st century drags on and continues to feel as though it is being dragged down, this distinction has become less and less apparent to the public at large.

Groups such as political parties, religious organizations and charities were founded once upon a time on a shared set of values and principles. These groups arose from individuals who shared similar personal philosophies and strove to act on those philosophies together. Now days, that dynamic has flipped and increasingly it feels as though people are joining these groups in spite of or without any personal philosophies at all.

It is easier to fight for one’s principles than to live up to them. — Alfred Adler

This change can most easily be observed in American political parties but has extended to almost every facet of society. For example, the traditional political right — based on classical liberalism and capitalism — now supports a president who is anti-free trade. On the other side of the spectrum, there are calls to open the borders and abolish ICE, a platform which would directly harm blue collar workers, a traditional base for the modern American left.

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Grant Piper
Grant Piper

Written by Grant Piper

Professional writer. Amateur historian. Husband, father, Christian.

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