Developing Your Personal Philosophy
The first question you need to answer is what do you want for your life? This is a planning exercise and it will be of greater benefit if you write it down. My list follows.
What I want for my life
1. Happiness
2. Enough money to have a great life
3. success in all my exams
4. To become a primary school teacher
5. Good health
6. My own home in a good neighbourhood
7. Foreign travel
8. Marriage
9. Two children
10. A dog
Let us go down the list. Happiness and enough money are very general so I might need to decide on what specific things make me happy and how much money is enough. Having a good career will go a long way in allowing me to achieve every other thing on the list.
Your personal philosophy will determine how successful you are at achieving the things on your list. The next exercise is, for each item above, write down a list of personal characteristics that will help you to achieve it. Three of my lists follow.
Success in all my exams
1. Do all my homework
2. Make a study timetable
3. Do research to improve my knowledge
4. Read ahead in my textbooks
5. Take notes in class
6. Start revising early for exams
Primary school teacher
1. Patience
2. Want to contribute to society
3. Like children
4. Good communicator
5. Self-control
6. Warmth
Good health
1. Eat a balanced diet
2. Get enough sleep
3. Do not smoke
4. Control alcoholic intake/No alcohol
5. Regular checkups
6. Regular exercise
After I look at those personal characteristics lists, I might decide that I need to be more disciplined in my approach to school work. I might decide that teaching is not the right career for me because I am not a patient person. On the other hand, I might decide to develop patience by making a special effort to be patient with everyone I interact with and every situation I find myself in. Presently, I might eat too much sweets and decide to cut down my sweets intake. Towards eating a balanced diet, I might plan to have vegetable with all my meals and eat fruits everyday. You do the same for each item on your lists.
You must prepare for those changes to be daily for the rest of your life. When you have completed all of the areas, your personal philosophy should be written in sentence form as below.
My Personal Philosophy
1. I will make up a study timetable and stick to it whether I feel like it or not.
2. I will pause before I answer someone, so that I am in control of what I say.
3. I will always help others if I am able to.
4. I will consume less sugary food and drink, and will eat fruits and vegetables with every meal.
5. I will not drink alcohol before driving or drive with anyone that I know have been drinking alcohol.
6. I will do all my homework on the day that it is given.
If you have as many sentences as you can think of and stick to them at all times, over time, you will see the positive changes that they will make in your life. With time and discipline, they will become second nature and they will make up your personal philosophy.
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