The Person You Want to Be, with Eric Teplitz

Ep. 5: Philosophy Professor, Author, and TEDx Speaker, Scott Samuelson

May 31, 2022 Eric Teplitz, Scott Samuelson Season 1 Episode 5
The Person You Want to Be, with Eric Teplitz
Ep. 5: Philosophy Professor, Author, and TEDx Speaker, Scott Samuelson
Show Notes Chapter Markers

Scott Samuelson is a teacher, philosopher, and essayist. The author of "The Deepest Human Life: An Introduction to Philosophy for Everyone" and "Seven Ways of Looking at Pointless Suffering", he is the winner of the Hiett Prize in the Humanities for his work in bringing philosophy to the public.

Among his many essays and articles, "Why I Teach Plato to Plumbers" in The Atlantic has been widely circulated.

He has taught the humanities in universities, colleges, prisons, houses of worship, and bars. On top of his regular job as a professor at Kirkwood Community College, he works with the Catherine Project, where experienced teachers engage great books with a small group of readers for free. He's currently finishing his next book: "Rome as a Guide to the Good Life: A Philosophical Grand Tour".

Scott Samuelson Links:
Scott's website: https://scottsamuelsonauthor.com/
TEDx Talk: "How Philosophy Can Save Your Life": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5P4BG77mSc
2015 Hiett Prize in the Humanities Recipient Keynote Speech: https://dallasinstitute.org/dr-scott-samuelson/
"Why I Teach Plato to Plumbers" (The Atlantic): https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/04/plato-to-plumbers/361373/
Scott Samuelson's Author Page on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Scott-Samuelson/e/B00J4YN852/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1
Catherine Project website: https://catherineproject.org/

About Your Host, Eric Teplitz:
Website: http://ericteplitz.com/
Schedule a FREE coaching consultation: http://ericteplitz.com/work-with-me/
Access a FREE preview of Eric's online course "Opening to Greater Possibilities": https://ericteplitz.thinkific.com/

Support the show
The Person You Want to Be intro
Introducing Scott Samuelson
Small town childhood ambitions
Scott's superhero origin story
"Mr. Nice Guy in the Sky"
Things more important than beliefs
William James
"Philosophy is just a natural part of being human"
Philosopher Dad
The importance of why?
"A blessed freedom"
What constitutes a professional philosopher?
"The Ancient Quarrel Between Poetry and Philosophy"
Thoughts on freedom
Learning and teaching
Why community college?
Philosophers get better with age
The "one year left to live" question