In 2019, I asked myself:

1. What fundamental beliefs guide my thoughts?
2. And what beliefs come out of these beliefs?

This is where my list of Life Principles was born. I recommend you ask yourself the same questions - it's a fun intellectual exercise. While it's impossible to follow your life principles at all times, this list can become a good approximation of what forces guide you.

Belief #1: Existence has no absolute meaning...

1. ...because we can’t know in absolute terms what reality is.
1. Science is the only approach that can give clues towards certainty.
2. Conclusion: Remain humble at all times: you are not entitled to proclaim the Truth.
2. ...hence, give it a meaning wisely.
1. We all worship something: choose consciously what you worship. More on this in Alan Watt's talk: This Is Water.
2. I consciously choose to optimize for love, growth and contribution: my existence on earth should contribute to its highest good and combine the acknowledgement of self in combination with others.
3. ...hence, life is a game you can’t lose.
1. Don’t take life seriously, but sincerely
2. Be detached yet committed to life. More on the notion of Detached Commitment in Mo Gawdat's book Solve For Happy.
1. Engage with life around the principle of detached commitment: have no emotional attachment towards its outcome, judge yourself by how you engage in the process.
2. To always give your best is the only metrics for self-judgment you can have.
3. Juggle between the self- and outward-centred sides.
1. Don’t take yourself too seriously
2. Overcome your own ego by focussing your energy outside yourself and overcome the negative experiences that come through trigger points.

Belief #2: It is irrelevant whether free will exists.

1. Based on most modern science, there is a high chance that free will doesn’t exist. Yet, responsibility for one’s ability to experience consciousness should remain. This is called compatibilism in philosophy.
   
2. Hence, you ought to be responsible for yourself.
1. Be responsible for your action.
2. Be responsible for your emotions.
3. The only consistency in life we can create is about our ability to act according to our principles.
1. Give up external control: you can’t control the outside world, only your response to it.
2. Give up internal control: act according to your own principles but don’t be tied to them, allowing space for them to evolve.
4. Hence, optimize life for expansion in order to be able to act out of integrity.
1. Optimize for self-awareness (being)
1. Life is a collection of stories we tell ourselves: choose yours consciously.
2. Be aware and learn to overcome your default states.
3. Know how you give meaning to life and interpret it.
4. Learn to listen to your intuition as a guiding compass.
2. Optimize for knowledge (mind)
1. Always be questioning.
2. Be aware of your beliefs.
3. Optimize for health/longevity (body)
4. Optimize for integral impact (business)
1. Notion of conscious capitalism.
2. Positive action comes when combining the fulfillment of both individual and collective needs .
5. Expansion requires experiencing pain
1. Don’t avoid pain: the trigger of pain is the best indicator for growth opportunities.
6. Loyalty is about being in integrity with your principles.
1. Be in integrity with your words. Speak your truth: don’t lie to yourself or to others.
2. Be in integrity with yourself. Be authentic and vulnerable to remove the barrier between you and the world

Your Turn

What do you believe in? And what beliefs come out from these beliefs? Feel free to write it out and share them with me!