This is Life: Under Pressure
What If We Taught Philosophy Instead of Productivity?
"Pressure, pushing down on me, pressing down on you…"
The world hums with it. We wear busyness like a badge of honour, measuring our worth by inbox zero, 4am wake‑ups, and side hustles. Hustle culture tells us that if we just grind harder, we’ll finally feel whole.
But what if we’ve been teaching the wrong thing all along?
Hustle Culture Is a Con
"It’s the terror of knowing what this world is about…"
I’ve seen it in teenagers who crumble under online pressure, in AFL players whose identities implode after the final siren, in men staring down retirement wondering who they are without their business card.
We teach people how to perform, but never how to be.
No planner, ice bath, or morning routine can answer the real questions:
Who am I without the applause?
What really matters when the game ends?
How do I want to live, love, and lead before my time’s up?
Enter Philosophical Health—The Quiet Rebellion
"Chipping around, kick my brains around the floor…"
Philosophical health is the antidote to optimisation culture.
It’s not abstract theory. It’s a practical, radical act: learning how to think deeply, reflect honestly, and live in alignment with your values—not just the roles you play.
When you’ve cultivated philosophical health:
A toxic online world can’t tell you who you are.
The end of a sports career isn’t the end of you.
Retirement or loss becomes a chapter for growth, not collapse.
We Need Better Questions, Not Better Hacks
"Turned away from it all like a blind man, sat on a fence but it don’t work…"
Imagine schools that teach teens to author their own lives—where identity and values are as core as maths and English.
Imagine sporting clubs mentoring players not just to perform but to become men who thrive when the crowd goes quiet.
Imagine workplaces that measure success not just by KPIs but by the kind of humans they help shape.
Flourishing > Productivity
"This is our last dance, this is ourselves… under pressure."
We’re under pressure. And no amount of “life hacks” will save us.
Flourishing doesn’t come from doing more—it comes from being awake to what matters most.
It’s time to stop teaching people to optimise every second of their lives and start teaching them how to live well.
Because when people know who they are and what they stand for, they don’t just perform better—they live better. They become the kind of humans our world actually needs.
The Dare
So here’s the dare: Stop asking “How can I get more done?” and start asking “What do I want my life to mean?”
"Love dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night…"
That’s what we should be teaching—
In schools.
In clubs.
In workplaces.
In our communities.
Not just so people can do more.
But so they can be more.
"This is our last dance… this is ourselves… under pressure."
