How Should We Live? Five Philosophies, Six Answers

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oi-Akshita Gupta

By Akshita Gupta

Saturday, June 27, 2026, 18:34

Think about the people in your life. The friend who romanticises rainy days, the one who treats every setback like a lesson, the one who believes life is whatever you make of it, and the one who just wants to enjoy the moment. We often assume these differences come down to personality, but they can also be traced back to different philosophies of life-ways of understanding meaning, happiness, success, and what it means to be human.

But these aren't just traits of a few friends or people we happen to know. Across cultures, generations, and centuries, entire groups of people have found themselves drawn to particular ways of seeing the world.

From ancient thinkers to contemporary philosophers , these ideas have shaped civilisations, cultures, and individual lives for centuries-and they continue to quietly shape the way many of us move through the world.

The Philosophies We Live By

Stoicism: The Mountain

Born in ancient Greece and popularised by thinkers like Marcus Aurelius and Seneca, Stoicism argues that while we cannot control what happens to us, we can control how we respond to it. The stoic is the person who remains calm during chaos, treats setbacks as lessons, and focuses their energy only on what can be changed. Their strength is resilience; their weakness can be emotional distance and appearing aloof.

As Marcus Aurelius wrote, "You have power over your mind-not outside events. Realise this, and you will find strength."

Existentialism: The Compass

Shaped by thinkers like Jean-Paul Sartre and Søren Kierkegaard, Existentialism begins with a radical idea: there is no predetermined script for your life. Meaning is not discovered but created, through the choices you make and the life you decide to build. The existentialist is the person who constantly asks, "Why?" They question expectations, reject paths that don't feel authentic, and take full ownership of who they become. Their strength is personal agency and authenticity; their weakness can be existential dread and the paralysis that comes with infinite possibilities.

As Sartre famously wrote, "Man is condemned to be free."

Absurdism: The Laugh in the Storm

Popularised by Albert Camus, Absurdism begins with an uncomfortable truth: human beings crave meaning in a universe that offers none. But instead of despairing, the absurdist embraces the joke. The goal is not to solve the mystery of life, but to live fully in spite of it. The absurdist is the person with a dark sense of humor, who acknowledges life's chaos and randomness but chooses joy anyway. They don't take themselves too seriously because, in the grand scheme of things, perhaps nothing is quite as serious as we imagine. Their strength is freedom and lightness in the face of uncertainty; their weakness can be drifting into aimlessness over time or avoiding long-term commitments.

As Camus famously wrote, "One must imagine Sisyphus happy."

Nihilism: The Empty Room

Ideology often associated with thinkers like Friedrich Nietzsche, Nihilism begins with a starting proposition: there may be no grand design, no cosmic justice, and no inherent purpose to our existence. To some, this is terrifying. To others, it is deeply freeing. The nihilist is the person who finds comfort in perspective. If the universe is indifferent, then perhaps not every expectation needs to be carried forever. They are the friend reminding you that in a hundred years, nobody will remember that embarrassing presentation or failed attempt anyway. Their strength is liberation from unnecessary pressure and fear; their weakness can be slipping into apathy or the feeling that nothing matters at all.

As Carl Sagan observed, "The universe seems neither benign nor hostile, merely indifferent."

Humanism: The Bridge

Rooted in the belief that human reason, empathy, and collective effort can build a better world, Humanism places its faith not in destiny or divine intervention, but in people. Meaning is found through connection, compassion, creativity, and our shared responsibility toward one another. The humanist is fiercely empathetic and community-minded. They believe in the power of education, science, art, and conversation to heal and improve lives. They look at strangers and see fellow travellers in the same human experience. Their strength is hope and a relentless belief in progress; their weakness can be idealism about human nature and disappointment when people fail to live up to that faith.
As the Roman playwright Terence wrote, "Nothing human is alien to me."

Hedonism: The Feast

Often misunderstood as excess, Hedonism-particularly in its Epicurean form - argues for something quieter: that joy is not a distraction from life but one of its central purposes. Good food, deep conversations, peaceful afternoons, and the company of people you love are not luxuries to be earned after living; they are part of what living is for. The hedonist is fully present in the pleasures of being alive. They protect their leisure fiercely, refuse to glorify burnout, and believe that a meaningful conversation over tea can be richer than a hundred rushed achievements. Their strength is an appreciation for beauty, rest, and contentment; their weakness can be slipping into escapism or avoiding necessary discomfort.

As Epicurus wrote, "Not what we have, but what we enjoy, constitutes our abundance."