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FILOSOFÍA DE LA ACCIÓN — Transcript

by JOSÉ MANUEL LÓPEZ GARCÍA · 2,190 words · 347 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00How are you doing? Welcome. Philosophy
0:03of action. In this video, I will try to
0:06explain some questions related to the
0:08philosophy of action, and I will focus
0:10on courage, risk, high expectations,
0:13tenacity, perseverance, intelligence,
0:15and, above all, action as the engine of
0:17success; "taking action," as they say
0:20nowadays, which assumes that one can
0:22achieve the realization of dreams and
0:24the conquest of a happiness that, even
0:27if not absolute, can be at least
0:29relative. Regarding the philosophy of
0:32action, one must speak of bravery, risk
0:34, and willpower as the foundation of
0:35success and happiness. The history of
0:38humanity is not the passive chronicle
0:40of those who wait for something to
0:42happen, but the burning testimony of
0:44those who dare. In every era, great
0:48achievements, discoveries, social
0:51movements, and masterpieces have arisen
0:54from the same source: the decisive
0:56action of a human being who refuses to
0:59settle for what is and sets the world
1:02in motion, even if the price is
1:05uncertainty, fear, or the possibility
1:08of failure. This is the raw material of
1:12the philosophy of action, understood
1:14not as simple technical or instrumental
1:17praxis, but as the fundamental energy
1:19that allows a life to become a
1:21biography, an existence into a destiny,
1:23an individual into a subject. And one
1:28must also consider action as the core
1:30of human life, without a doubt. Since
1:34from Aristotle, for example, to Hannah
1:36Arendt, from Nietzsche to Kierkegaard,
1:39action has been contemplated as more
1:41than just a physical movement. It is an
1:44ontological, ethical, and existential
1:46principle. We are what we do, said the
1:49Stagirite, and not only in a moral
1:51sense, but also an ontological one. The
1:53human being realizes their essence
1:55through activity. Not through passivity
1:58. And this must be said loud and clear.
2:01Aristotle distinguished between
2:03different forms of action. Praxis,
2:05which would be ethical or political
2:07action, poiesis, productive action, and
2:09theoria, contemplation. But for him,
2:12even contemplation requires an active
2:14choice, an impulse of the intelligence
2:16toward the truth. There is no room for
2:20inert conformism in the good life. To
2:22be happy is to act well, he said. And
2:24acting well is not reduced to doing
2:26things, but to doing the right things
2:29with intention and virtue or goodness.
2:31Eudaimonia, human fulfillment, is the
2:34result of a life of rational activity
2:37guided by excellence. Centuries later,
2:44Hannah Arendt, in The Human Condition,
2:47will also say that what is truly human
2:49is not labor or production, but
2:51political action. Understood, of course
2:55, as the way in which human beings
2:57reveal their uniqueness and freedom in
3:00the public space. For Arendt, action is
3:03not just a means to an end, it is the
3:05revelation of identity, a manifestation
3:08of being. To live is to act. There is
3:10no self without action, and this must
3:12never be forgotten. We must also speak
3:14of courage, which is the driving
3:16principle of the new. Every authentic
3:18act involves a risk. Therefore, the
3:21first requirement or condition for
3:23acting with full meaning is courage,
3:25not reckless or unconscious impulse,
3:28but the lucid bravery that assumes
3:30danger without being paralyzed. Fear is
3:33a natural and protective emotion, but
3:35if it becomes a vital norm, it
3:37transforms into sabotage of the soul
3:40that prevents us from living the way we
3:43truly want. Being brave does not mean
3:46not having fear, but acting in spite of
3:48fear. Courage is the virtue that truly
3:51allows us to cross the threshold
3:53between possibility and reality.
3:55Without it, dreams remain as vaporous
3:58ideas, without flesh or biography.
4:00Every great personal change, every
4:03vital ascent, every important
4:05achievement has been preceded by an act
4:07of courage, because well-trodden paths
4:10do not lead to new summits. And it must
4:13also be pointed out that at this point
4:15Nietzsche provides a radical vision,
4:18since for him to live authentically is
4:20to live dangerously. He who is not
4:23willing to risk is condemned to obey.
4:27His notion of the overman does not
4:29refer to a superior being by nature,
4:32but to one who dares to create his own
4:34values, to act from within himself,
4:36without delegating his destiny to
4:38others. The true human being is one who
4:42has the courage to shape their life
4:44like a work of art, knowing there are
4:47no guarantees, but even so, they take
4:49the risk and do it. Courage is,
4:52therefore, the condition of possibility
4:54for all real transformation. In a
4:57society that fosters the fear of error,
4:59absolute security, and total
5:01predictability, remembering that to
5:03live is to take risks becomes an
5:05ethical imperative, a moral mandate.
5:09And we must also value high
5:10expectations, the audacity of desire.
5:13The second pillar of the philosophy of
5:16action is the height of one's
5:17expectations. There is no great action
5:20without a great vision. The level of
5:23our aspirations determines the reach of
5:25our decisions. Aiming high is not
5:28vanity; it is responsibility toward
5:31oneself. Having high expectations does
5:34not mean expecting life to be easy, but
5:37demanding the best possible of oneself,
5:40or the best one can do. Modern
5:43societies, in their attempt to protect
5:46individuals from frustration, have
5:49promoted a culture of low expectations.
5:53Don't dream too big, for example, don't
5:55take risks, don't set difficult goals,
5:58they say, but that is a sure recipe for
6:00mediocrity. True happiness does not
6:03come from the absence of difficulties,
6:06but from real progress toward
6:08meaningful, ambitious goals. The Danish
6:11philosopher Søren Kierkegaard wrote
6:14that the greatest sin of modern man is
6:17not evil, but passive despair,
6:20resignation, and not daring to be
6:23oneself. This despair also has its
6:26origin in the renunciation of high
6:28expectations. By not believing oneself
6:31worthy of something great, the
6:32individual gives up before starting.
6:34Action, on the contrary, begins when
6:37one grants oneself the right to expect
6:39a lot from oneself. And this is also
6:42key. Ultimately, expectation is not
6:46just a wish; it is a demand, a tension,
6:49a direction. If one demands little of
6:51oneself, even with talent, one will
6:52achieve little. If one demands a lot of
6:55oneself, even with limitations, one
6:56will grow. High expectations also raise
7:00the level of action, and this is
7:02fundamental. Tenacity, the soul of
7:05effective action, must also be valued,
7:08but courage and high expectations are
7:11not enough. Many start with fire and
7:14end in smoke. The difference between
7:18the one who reaches a summit and the
7:19one who stays at the base is not so
7:21much genius as it is perseverance.
7:24Authentic action is lasting, constant,
7:28and resilient. Tenacity is the
7:30forgotten virtue of our impatient age.
7:34And this must also be said very clearly
7:36. In a fast-paced world that values
7:40instant gratification, persevering
7:42seems old-fashioned, but most truly
7:44important or great achievements require
7:47time, effort, falls, and repetitions.
7:51Firm willpower, the ability to act with
7:54consistency over time, is more decisive
7:56than brilliant but intermittent talent.
8:04In addition to all this, for example,
8:07William James, one of the fathers of
8:10modern psychology, said that the will
8:12is not a blind force, but an
8:14intelligence of the soul. It is true;
8:17knowing how to tell yourself, "Do it
8:20now, even when you don't feel like it,"
8:22is a form of inner freedom. He who acts
8:26only when he feels like it is a slave
8:29to his mood swings, to his internal
8:32fluctuations. He who acts because he
8:34has decided to act builds character,
8:36and this is also something essential.
8:39Tenacity is not stubbornness; it is
8:41firm flexibility, knowing how to adapt
8:43without giving up; it is falling 100
8:45times and getting up 101. Thomas Edison
8:48said, "I have not failed. I have found
8:5110,000 ways that don't work. This is
8:55the logic of transformative action:
8:58moving forward even through error. And
9:02in this way, one can say that applied
9:05intelligence means thinking well to act
9:07better. Action without intelligence can
9:12be reckless. Intelligence without
9:15action is sterile. True transformative
9:18power is born from a union of both. But
9:23it's not just about academic or
9:25technical intelligence, but vital
9:28intelligence, as Ortega y Gasset called
9:31it: the ability to navigate life
9:33through an understanding of its deep
9:36coordinates and, in this way, also act
9:39intelligently, which doesn't mean
9:41waiting to have all the answers, but
9:44knowing how to decide with what you
9:47have in each moment. Understanding the
9:50context, anticipating consequences when
9:53possible, and discerning priorities is,
9:55above all, avoiding analysis paralysis.
9:58Many get lost in an excess of thought
10:00that blocks action. Practical
10:03intelligence, on the other hand, knows
10:05when to think and when to act. And that
10:07is what it's really about. The
10:08philosopher and psychologist Viktor
10:11Frankl wrote that between stimulus and
10:14response there is a space, and in that
10:16space lies our freedom. This is
10:19intelligence applied to action: not
10:22reacting impulsively, but also not
10:24getting trapped in eternal doubt. Life
10:28demands decisions, and life sometimes
10:31cannot wait. Intelligent action also
10:34integrates the ability to learn from
10:36mistakes. Every failure can be a lesson
10:39if examined with humility and the
10:41strategy is adjusted. Effective action
10:44is that which evolves, which changes
10:46according to needs. Action and purpose,
10:50therefore, are what lead to happiness
10:53and success. And therefore, it is
10:56advisable to develop courageous actions
11:00with high expectations, an attitude
11:02sustained by tenacity and guided by
11:05intelligence. That is the key to
11:07success. And it is also the key to
11:10happiness. Yes, if we understand
11:12happiness not as constant pleasure, but
11:14as existential meaning, as fulfillment
11:17or self-actualization. In fact, for
11:19example, Viktor Frankl in Man's Search
11:22for Meaning shows how even in the worst
11:25scenarios, like concentration camps,
11:28those who truly found a purpose, a goal
11:31, an objective, a cause for which to
11:34act, maintained a certain spiritual
11:37dignity. Action with meaning redeems
11:40even suffering. And in this way, one
11:43can say that action oriented toward the
11:46good, growth, and love gives us
11:48direction. Human beings cannot be happy
11:52in passivity. Tedium, emptiness, and
11:55apathy are the result of a life without
11:57meaningful action. Acting, getting
12:00involved, and fighting for something
12:02beyond oneself is what transforms a
12:04life into something valuable.
12:06Achievement does not always translate
12:08into external recognition or financial
12:11success, but it does into internal
12:13fulfillment. And that is something
12:15fundamental as well. Erich Fromm, in
12:17The Art of Loving, said that love is an
12:19action, not a passive feeling. Love, or
12:22to love, is to work for the growth of
12:25another. This can be extended to all of
12:27life. Living is an art, and art
12:29requires conscious action. One does not
12:31love life if one does not actively
12:33cultivate it. Beyond this, it must also
12:42be noted that against resignation, the
12:45imperative to act is key, because in
12:48these times of cynicism, emotional
12:51fatigue, and disenchantment, the
12:53philosophy of action also becomes an
12:56ethical call. To act is to resist
13:00against nihilism. It is to affirm that
13:02what we do matters, that our decisions
13:05shape reality in a certain way. And in
13:08this way, many also justify their
13:10inertia by appealing to circumstances.
13:14It can't be done, the world is like
13:15this, it's too late, I have no talent.
13:17But these are sophisticated excuses for
13:20fear. As Albert Camus said, there is no
13:23destiny that cannot be overcome by
13:25contempt, and that contempt begins with
13:28a free act. And in this way, life is
13:32not predetermined; it is an open field
13:35of possibilities. Each action is a kind
13:39of sowing. Not acting is also acting.
13:42It is letting others decide for us. In
13:44inaction, personal sovereignty is lost.
13:47In action, dignity is gained. And it
13:50must also be said that for this reason,
13:53the philosophy of action is not just a
13:55theory of behavior, but a metaphysics
13:57of being. We are agents, we are
14:00freedoms in motion, we are called to
14:03act and to act well. And in this way,
14:08as an epilogue, one can say that one
14:11must live by acting. The philosophy of
14:15action is, ultimately, a philosophy of
14:17living in fullness. It is not about
14:19being constantly in motion or falling
14:21into sterile hyperactivity. It is about
14:25giving direction, shape, and content to
14:27our existence through conscious choices
14:30and brave actions. And in this way,
14:34being brave is daring to fail. Having
14:37high expectations is demanding of
14:39oneself what one expects from the world
14:41. Being tenacious is loving creative
14:43repetition. Being intelligent is
14:46knowing when to act and how. And to act
14:48is to say," I am alive, and this life
14:50is not a waiting room, but a work of
14:52art. "A work of art, in a certain sense
14:55, as well. Faced with passivity,
14:57complaint, resignation, sterile
14:59nostalgia, or fatalism, action, on the
15:01other hand, is the path for those who
15:03want to live authentically; because in
15:06the end, as the poet Antonio Machado
15:08said:" Traveler, there is no path, the
15:10path is made by walking, by acting, by
15:13taking action. "And that walking is
15:16nothing more than the action that
15:18builds destiny, that builds the life we
15:21truly want. Anyone who wishes can share
15:26this video, like it, or subscribe to my
15:28YouTube channel.

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