141. Christoph Quarch: Why philosophy is relevant in today’s world

Sue Stockdale interviews philosopher Dr. Christoph Quarch, exploring his definition of philosophy and its relevance in today's world. Christoph shares his personal journey toward philosophy, his academic path, and the importance of meaningful conversation as a means for individual and collective transformation. They reflect on the significance of inspiration and spirit in fostering innovation and organisational change, as well as delving into the need for slowing down, reconnecting with nature, and embracing open-mindedness as keys to living a more fulfilling life.

About Dr. Christoph Quarch
Dr. Christoph Quarch is a philosopher and bestselling author of numerous books on philosophical, ethical, economic and social topics. He supports executives in companies, teaches as professor at Danube Private University in Krems a. d. Donau and as a lecturer at Fulda University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg School of Business Administration (HSBA) and Basel University. Christoph organises philosophical journeys for the weekly newspaper DIE ZEIT, and together with his podcasts, articles and the weekly radio column "Frühstücksquarch”, he covers a wide audience throughout the German-speaking world. Quarch's work draws on the sources of European philosophy to provide answers to the multiple challenges of the 21st century. In 2019, he and his wife Christine Teufel founded the New Platonic Academy to promote a renaissance of European humanism.

Connect with Christoph Quarch via website

Key Quotes

• Philosophy is mostly about analyzing and deciphering our current mindset
• There's a kind of operational system. which is working on our brain, on our mind, and we hardly ever reflect on it.
• We think conversation is something that is so taken for granted, everybody knows how to do it. But in fact, we don't know how to do it.
• Usually we do not listen to the words that other people  use, but we only hear what we want to hear.
• The more tools, instruments of communication we have, the less developed seems to be our capacity to converse in a good way.
• I think we need to learn to reconnect in a proper way, to reconnect with life, to reconnect with nature, to reconnect with being itself.
• I want to convince people  that life is easier and probably more fulfilling when we stop trying to do everything on the basis of our own power and our own ambition.

Time Stamps
[02:48] Collective social patterns and habits.
[05:05] Philosophy as a lifestyle.
[11:41] The importance of meaningful dialogue.
[15:11] Socratic dialogue and reflection.
[16:56] Disruptive Mindset in Transformation.
[22:08] The significance of inspiration.
[25:42] Spiritual dimension in conversation.
[29:05] The essence of human interaction.
[32:46] Reconnecting with nature's meaning.
[40:00] Open attitude towards philosophy.
[41:29] Engaging with philosophical conversations.


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