6 Ways To Live A Better Life According To Alan Watts
Everyone wants to live a better life. Many people look for things outside themselves to improve their lives. It's easy to say that a bigger house, another car, or more money are the answers to our problems. To a certain extent, these things might improve our lives. However, there is a limit to how much more money can improve our lives. We can live a better life by reflecting on ourselves at a certain point. This is something philosopher Alan Watts spent a lot of time talking about. He drew from Eastern wisdom and Western philosophy to inspire people to live a better life. He talked about accepting suffering and living in the present as ideas that could improve our lives. Here we explore six of Alan Watts ideas to live a better life.
We Are One
One of the most well-known ideas Watts discusses is the idea of "The Illusion of Separateness." This is the idea that our egos make us think we have a separate self, but this is an illusion. Instead, Watts suggests we are all connected. Eastern ideas in Hinduism and Buddhism inspired Watts's idea. A central idea of Hinduism is the experience called moksa. This is the liberation from the idea that everyone exists separate from their surroundings. In this way, everything is one. Once we all understand that we are all connected, we may find ourselves feeling more compassion, empathy, and understanding. This will improve our relationships with others and the world around us.
Living in The Present
A piece of advice you have probably heard more than once is to live in the present moment. Watts is another philosopher who reiterates the importance of living in the present moment. He points out that in the Western world, many people have a kind of chronic anxiety related to time. The more we focus on time, the more we want to pursue the future. We want to chase our happiness faster, and the future becomes more important than the present. Often, this leads us to race to finish an accomplishment rather than enjoy the process. Watts compares our enjoyment of the world to listening to music. He points out that the point of playing music or listening to music isn't to get it over with or accomplish it. Instead, the point of listening to music is to listen to it and enjoy the process. This is how we should also approach life. Instead of rushing to accomplish something for the sake of accomplishing it, Watts says we should enjoy it in the present moment.
Practicing Minimalism
Similar to living in the present moment, Watts also suggests living a minimalist lifestyle. So often, we focus on what we can accomplish and check off our to-do list. We want more money, more material possessions, and more experiences that give us pleasure now. Living with this mindset, we always chase something else and don't take time to enjoy what we already have. Instead of looking for ways to get more of something, Watts encourages people to enjoy what they already have. While getting more of something feels good at the moment, this mindset isn't sustainable. There are limits in life to how much time you have to enjoy the things around you. Collecting more stuff, whether it's material possessions or friendships, means you will have less time to enjoy the things you already have. Further, many things people collect in their lives don't actually give them pleasure. Watts encourages us to take inventory of our lives and consider what we can do without making time for what we really value.
Let Go of Security
Another thing Watts encourages us to let go of is security. Most people feel a desire to be secure. We want perfect security, whether by having more money, food, friends, or something else. Wanting security in itself isn't a bad thing, but Watts believes that wanting perfect security is the problem. Life is in constant flux, and there is no guarantee that what you have today will make you secure tomorrow. Since everything is in flux, Watts encourages people to embrace insecurity. By this, he doesn't mean don't plan or prepare for tomorrow. Rather, he advocates that we admit we are not perfect and let our lives have little flaws and imperfections. Letting go of the need for perfect security will be liberating and bring new possibilities.
Accept Suffering
Along with accepting insecurity, Watts encouraged people to accept suffering. This wasn't meant as a message for people to be complicit in watching the suffering of others. Watts meant this as a message to recognize the role of suffering. Nothing good comes in life without some pain. If we go through our entire lives without facing a single difficult situation, we would miss out on the joy that follows pain. Watts pointed out that you get long-term satisfaction from short-term sacrifice. The more you challenge yourself and sit outside your comfort zone, the more you grow.
Living Playfully
One of the most important things that impacts our lives is our attitude. Watts encourages us to engage in the world creatively and live our lives playfully. He says we should find joy in the process of life. In society, there is often a rigid divide between work and play. You are supposed to work hard to make enough money to give you enough time for play. However, this division between work and play doesn't have to exist. We could bring more play into work. This doesn't mean ditching work to play soccer with your friends. Watts meant we could bring a more playful attitude to work and everything we do in life, whether singing when you wash the dishes or dancing a little while you work.
This is only a preview of advice Watts can offer. Accepting and practicing just one of these tidbits of advice could improve your life somehow. For example, if we realize we are not all so different, we will express more compassion and develop better relationships. Or, if we accept suffering as a part of life, we can challenge ourselves to grow. Reading the works of Alan Watts might inspire a change that leads to a better life.
