Žižek on how to stop wasting your life: a step by step guide

Hello everybody, today I would like to make a video summarizing Slavoj zizek’s psychoanalytic and philosophical argument about enjoyment and how one can “live oneself like one’s symptom”.

I hope this video has helped you in some small way. Thank you for watching.

Julian

#zizek #slavojzizek #philosophy #psychoanalysis

[julianphilosophy]

If you want the simple answer, skip to minute 11:00

Simple summary: How to stop wasting your life:

Find something you want to do every day and that inspires you to take an active interest in life. Make sure it’s both satisfying and difficult for you, but also of service
to others/a higher goal.

Hope this video has been useful and helpful. For more, visit:

[mattk]

I remeber Zizek once saying in a lecture, "Pick one thing, and do it to the end."

[sanityd]

But Slavoj, I cannot afford the rent.

[adam]

Title looked like click-bait but found this nuanced and interesting

[AliM-zzdu]

I'm an Iranian follower of your presentations. You put the idea into words nicely. The climax, to me, was the functionality of the goal's being "of service to others/a higher goal". Thanks Julian..

[ciboxcibox]

Plastic pills does a podcast and has come to some conlusion that philsophy is mostly used as a sophisticated self help. These more direct videos are easier to consumer inbetween the brain teasers,

[madloop]

Thank you Julian for making these videos. I have been following your videos for over an year now and it has immensely helped me with grasping concepts related to psychoanalysis and critical theory. Coming from a STEM background and having no training in social sciences, your videos have made me love this field even more. I have been reading and listening to lectures as much as I can and I feel like I cannot do otherwise.

Philosophy has also made me reevaluate the kind of work I do and it made me switch my job. Now I work in policy making space where I do data analytics to make better policies. Even tho I think it's a good cause that I work for, a part of me still feels alienated from it, that is I cannot completely make it my own personality (for lack of a better term). If I am to follow Zizek's advice - pick one thing and go to the end, I would love to completely engage myself with philosophy, psychoanalysis, sociology etc but I think my love for these subjects is only because I somehow feel alienated in my day job, or the dissatisfaction I get from my day job is what pushes me to read these things. I am afraid that if I give up my day job and completely devote myself to philosophy, I will end up not liking it? or that it wont bring me the level of satisfaction that I expect it to bring.
It is very similar to what Zizek said- how a man thinks that if his wife were to disappear then he could live his life happily with his mistress but it is only because of the dissatisfaction the wife causes him that he enjoys his time with his mistress lol.

Would love to hear your thoughts on this.

[Lake_Claire]

Im really glad I found your channel Julian, it’s great! You became my daily dose of philosophy!

Love from Poland

[M.Menger]

THANK YOU for this video, I stumbled upon it by accident and didn't expect to find a possible starting point to solve my struggles as an artist who was ready to give up art. it helped me to change my perspective and realise that I was about to give up something that made me wake up and do something every day, because of some hardship. i finally remembered that hardship, or rather overcoming it, is what made me happy my whole life as an artist.

[ykskpgv]

This was a great video - thank you, Julian.

[scarWalsh]

Great video, with a very well illustrated and supported set of points.

[lukedmoss]

Reading SOI for the first time and been trying to wrap my head around symptom/synthome and this helps snap some of that writing into clearer perspective

[m_alcoves]

This point of our work being worth to others/higher goal is something that will keep me thinking about. It's crazy that I already thought about this but not so clearly as in the development of this video. Thank you, sir!

[yzu_]

I found what you explained to be similar to the Japanese philosophy of Ikigai. Very insightful, thank you 🙏

[saharmactabi]

My symptom appreciates your symptom, Thank you for sharing

[davidakinmade]

I need to buy a beer for whoever introduced you to one piece. Hearing one of my favorite online philosophers talk about my favorite manga is just joy for me in this life 👏🏿👏🏿

[meganoj]

what if my "symptom" is abusing drugs, living promiscuously, and participating in organised crime? the thing about the modern world is that we have so much padding around us in every way possible we have nothing to do that would serve others, inspire passion and be productive.

[classic_kennedy]

Thank you again Julian for this wonderful breakdown. For me, Street Photography has become part of my daily ritual. I absolutely love just Being on the street. However, I did have to find out the eternal project - which led me to Henri Lefebvre's idea of the "Right to the City, " which I find worth fighting for. Question: Will you ever introduce the concept of Play? (Huizinga)

[hintergrundfisch]

I dont get the narrative about the old man reading. His demise is not the result of his failure to create meaning in his life that benefits others, but it is simply due to a misunderstanding. I dont get why it should follow from Zizek's argument that you have to do something from which others benefit in order to be contempt

[LuigiSimoncini]

Great video. I'd like to get to know Lacan's ideas before delving more into Zizek, where do i start? Suggestions welcome.