Carl Jung - How To Become Superior (Jungian Philosophy)

Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and  psychoanalyst who founded the field of analytical psychology. He was very interested  in the inner workings of a person: their personality, desires, what is  conscious to them and what is not. He called the center of our  consciousness ‘the ego’: it regulates everything that we are conscious  of and decides how to and on what to act.

However, everybody also has a great many traits  and parts of their personality that they are unconscious of: this includes what Jung called  ‘the shadow. ’ Jung divided the unconscious into two layers: personal unconsciousness, and  collective unconsciousness. The former is all that is part of you as an individual,  but that you are not aware of or even in denial about.

This will include hidden or unknown  emotions, desires, memories, feelings, and more. The collective unconscious encompasses those  unconscious feelings, thoughts, and instincts, that all people as a group have or have had  in the past. They are the things universally inherited by humans.

Jung believed, all human  beings share certain traits or affinities, and they can be described as ‘archetypes. ’  Archetypes have been a part of our collective history since long before Jung, and commonly found  in mythology, fairy tales, or religious stories. Jung believed that bringing your unconsciousness  into your own conscious mind is a foolproof recipe for becoming the best human being you can be,  or as DrJung would put it, a superior person, and in today’s video we’re going to show  you 7 ways to become a superior person, according to the philosophy of Carl Jung.

Express yourself creatively Jung says “Without this playing with  fantasy, no creative work has ever yet come to birth. The debt we owe to the  play of the imagination is incalculable. ” Jung believed that the art an individual makes  houses parts of their unconsciousness within every piece.

When making art, our inner states  and situations unknowingly influence what we make, and the way we make it. Jung incorporated  the drawing of mandalas in his philosophy. Mandalas specifically have been used for  decades by different ancient cultures as a symbol of the universe and  wholeness - and Jung decided that the best kind of circle motif to  represent its artist is the mandala.

For a long while, Jung sketched a mandala in  his notebook every morning and found that it did indeed correspond with his feelings, emotions,  and thoughts at the time. The more harmonious the mandala, the better you are probably doing. Jung  hypothesized that people have an especially strong urge to make art - such as mandalas - when they  are in phases of personal growth.

When you or your life is changing, you feel less in control  and you need some sort of way to regain it. If you draw mandalas at regular intervals  and learn how to interpret them, you have an incredible tool for self-improvement.  Drwing a mandala relaxes your brain and will help your thoughts focus on all the  things that you normally suppress.

Moreover, the kinds of lines you draw and colors you  choose can tell you things about yourself: do you use round, soft shapes or harsh  lines? Cold or warm colours? And what do you think this reflects?

If you analyze  yourself through mandalas every day, week, or month, you can track your growth and  changes in a way you never have before. But it’s not just limited to mandalas, all  creative works you produce can help you analyze your way of thinking, priorities, and  unconscious concerns. All these insights can then help you get to know and improve yourself  - and, therefore, become a superior person.

Be conscious of your performances According to Jung “The persona is  a complicated system of relations between individual consciousness and  society, fittingly enough a kind of mask, designed on the one hand to make  a definite impression upon others, and, on the other, to conceal the  true nature of the individual. ” One of the biggest things that holds you back  from being the superior person in a room, is the fact that you probably overly adjust to the  other people in it. Knowingly or not, most people present a fake version of themselves, in some way  or another, whenever they’re in social situations.

For example, they laugh at unfunny jokes, agree  with statements that they do not actually support, or lie about their own well-being for the  comfort of others. It’s almost a performance, like you’re wearing a mask over your actual  self and Carl Jung called this the ‘persona. ’ Your persona is how you present yourself  in order for people to perceive you in the way you want them to.

You might  want to seem kind and easy-going, and thus you agree with everything and give  compliments that you do not mean. Our persona develops when we learn about social rules and the  expectations of those around us during childhood. Someone who grew up in a household  where sharing your own opinion was seen as arguing and would be punished, has  probably developed a persona that tends to avoid conflict and goes along with  the most popular opinion; In contrast, someone who grew up in a household that saw  emotions as weakness has probably developed a persona that is tough and unfeeling.

But our  persona is not just one thing: according to Jung, everybody has multiple masks. The two examples we  just looked at could have been the same person. You actually wear multiple masks at a time  - for example, you want to appear agreeable and tough - and sometimes, what masks you wear  depends on the circumstances.

You act differently among family members than with friends, and  you certainly act differently among friends than you do with authority figures! For all  of these situations, you have seperate masks. The persona causes problems when the mask you’re  wearing is unnecessary, unhelpful, or detrimental to your well-being.

Imagine the person who always  acts tough among friends, even though they’re going through something difficult. This mask  prevents them from getting any help or relief. This clashing with one’s actual needs is very  frustrating and bad for your self-image.

You might start to blame yourself for wanting to open up  and show emotion - even if it is totally natural - because it would destroy your persona. When you  think of your persona as the way you should truly be, you are aiming for something impossible, and  as a result you constantly disappoint yourself. Jung called this ‘overidentification with the  persona.

’ You believe that you are your persona, and get angry at yourself whenever you fail to  live up to the expectations of that persona. Not only is this a miserable, harmful, and  inauthentic way to live, but someone who has been overidentifying with their persona for too long  could accidentally destroy it. This might happen in the way of burnouts that cause you to be  unable to act any longer, and might cause you to isolate yourself.

You could also lose your  mask right in the middle of a ‘performance’ - the tough person suddenly bursts out crying in front  of their friends, or the agreeable person snaps at someone sharing an opposing opinion. However, Jung also did not believe that we should get rid of our masks entirely. Instead  they are absolutely necessary for our social existence.

For example, not showing emotions  in front of your boss is probably for the best; crying in his office will definitely be seen as  unprofessional, especially if it happens often, and it probably isn’t best to share very personal  and intimate or traumatic details about your life on the workfloor. Moreover, being agreeable can  help you out if you try to make a good impression on someone. So how do we keep our masks without  overidentifying with them or using them too much?

Put simple, instead of letting the mask rule  you, you should learn how to rule the mask. This process is known as restoration. By restoring,  Jung means developing a flexible persona that does not collide with one’s true self, but  rather helps one’s true self navigate society.

The restored persona should be a persona one is  aware of, not one that manifests unconsciously or is seen as your ‘true self. ’ In other words,  you should know when you’re putting on the mask and why! Instead of automatically concealing your  emotions, you should ask yourself case by case, what would be most beneficial to me  right now?

Sharing your emotions with close friends could relieve you, while doing  so with your boss might just be a bad move. By being conscious of your performance,  you can choose to integrate your true self into it. If your true self is someone who is  sometimes emotional and sometimes disagreeable, you can choose when to let it out instead  of concealing it entirely.

Superior people know exactly when to act a certain way - and  you could, too! In order to integrate your authentic self into your persona, though,  you should get to know your authentic self. Identify Your Dark Side In the words of Jung “Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual's  conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.

” One of the most important parts of  Jung’s philosophy is getting to know your shadow-self. Your shadow-self consists of  all the parts of yourself that you consider bad, reject, and repress. This might include anger  issues, dark thoughts, shameful tendencies, and even sexual desires.

In many cases the  shadow contains traits or desires that are rejected by society as a whole, and we have  been taught from very early on to hide those parts of ourselves. You deny their existence and  hope that by doing that, you make them go away. However, it does not work.

Instead, these traits  are there, will always be there, and sometimes show their ugly head when you least expect it. For  example, someone who is convinced that they are never anrgy and that anger is a negative emotion,  might one day just feel a strong sensation of anger and have absolutely no way to prevent a  massive outburst. To truly learn who you are, you have to get to know your shadow.

You have to  become conscious of the unconscious. In order to do so, you should regularly take a step back and  analyze your own behavior, thoughts and feelings during daily life. This could be done through  journalling or mediation.

Why did you behave the way you did? Did it feel authentic to you? Why  or why not?

What was your first urge or instinct in a certain situation? You have to interrogate  yourself like you’re interrogating someone else! By ‘getting to know’ your shadow-self, Jung  means that it is important to become aware of the shadow-self, without identifying  with it.

You do not have to see yourself as all those traits you try not to  show. If your shadow houses anger, you don’t have to see yourself  as an angry person. Instead, just acknowledge the existence of these things. 

Realize and accept that they are inside of you. And if like in this example, you find that you  are an angry person deep down, you should think of when it might actually be helpful to show  that anger instead of always pushing it down. When is the right time to wear the mask, and when  is it right to put it down?

For example, getting angry at a passerby for bumping into you seems  unhelpful and unhealthy. However, getting angry at a friend who canceled their plans with you for  the fifth time in a row might need some anger from your side for them to truly realize that they’re  hurting you. In other words, you have to find ways to integrate everything you find in your shadow  into your personality instead of ignoring it.

Your shadow is not here to punish  you but rather to teach you, and your repressed traits are here to  stay. So only if you accept and embrace your shadow qualities can you improve  yourself. The self-knowledge and ability to use all sides of yourself is what you  need to do to become a superior person.

4. Get To Know Your Two Selves To quote Jung “What can a man say  about woman, his own opposite? ” In Jungian philosophy, if you dive deeper into the  shadow, you will find that you house two kinds of traits: masculine, and feminine.

Jung called  this unconscious part of yourself the animus, which is masculine, and anima, which  is feminine. These apparently opposite, ‘genderised’ traits that you possess  are called your contrasexual aspects. Jung believed that if you are a woman, you most  likely have a personal masculine psyche - or animus - within you and, if you are a man, you  most likely have an inner personal feminine psyche - or anima.

The anima and animus are  based on the Greek terms of eros and logos. ‘Eros’ is associated with creativity, passion,  connection and wholeness. ‘Logos’ is associated with rationality, objectivity, power and action. 

However, due to the standard expectations of 20th Century society, men are encouraged to suppress  their feminine traits, and vice versa. We hide them away in our subconscious and behave  the way we think we are ‘supposed to’. Of course it’s obvious nonsense that literally  half of the global population all think in precisely one way with one set of values, and the  other half think entirely the opposite.

And this should clue you into the fact that in reality,  personality traits are almost entirely unrelated to sex or gender. Sometimes women suppress  their anima, sometimes men repress their animus, but we all have a wonderful, messy, ever-changing  mix of both. The point here is not to convince you that you are suppressing certain gendered traits,  or that this is in any way a negative thing, but to look inward and ask yourself how  that mix resides in you right now and how it affects how you’re feeling, and how you  engage with the world and people around you.

In reality, everyone is contradictory in some  way. A person can both value truth and be a liar, or seem an extrovert but feel like an introvert.  But since this is not commonly acknowledged, we are often encouraged to only embrace  the traits expected of our gender identity and ignore - or worse, actively admonish -  those that might contradict them.

We repress. Think of a man who loves to knit. It is  considered a creative, feminine hobby, and thus not expected of a man.

He might want  to try and hide this hobby for fear of insults and ridicule, while this could be a wonderful  skill to have and a way to relax. Another example is the belief that women are generally better  with emotions than men. Because of that idea, a woman might feel like she has to talk about her  emotions all the time even if she doesn’t want to, while a man might be discouraged to do so even if  he wants to.

The denial of your anima or animus is not only unnecessary, but it will twist your  traits into something ugly. Men who repress their emotions to be more manly might become cold  and cruel, while women who force themselves into certain roles because society says they  ‘should’ could become bitter and distant. Thus it is important to learn how to  recognize and accept your anima and animus.

Everybody has contradictory traits,  and they can live in balance, just like your negative shadow traits can. To  analyze your masculine and feminine tendencies, you can observe people around you and see which  of them you admire or think positively about, and which you find yourself being judgemental  about. Then: question yourself.

Why do you feel a certain way about one person and differently about  another? Would your opinion of those people be any different if you perceived them as a different  gender? What feelings do you usually have when an individual’s behavior doesn’t align with societal  gender norms?

Does this affect you? And if so, how? And why?

All these questions and practices  will help you gain more insight into yourself and can help you become more open, balanced,  and successful. In other words: Superior. 5.

Look Into Your Archetypes Jung tells us “Archetypes are like riverbeds which dry up when the water deserts  them, but which it can find again at any time. ” The very last part of your subconscious  comes from something that Jung called the ‘collective unconscious. ’ This  collective unconscious is a certain unconsciousness shared by all human  beings through their shared history and experiences.

Through our ancestors  we inherit certain traits from birth, and that is the reason for all similarities  between people across time, cultures, and space. They are the natural tendencies of the human mind  to see the world around you in a certain way and behave in a certain way. This does not mean that  every single person shares the exact same traits, but rather that there is a finite collection  of traits, and everyone has some of them.

Some examples of archetypes  that Jung describes are The Hero The hero is a brave fighter who thinks that  if they work hard enough, they can achieve anything. They're pretty stubborn and believe in  themselves a lot, maybe even too much sometimes. The Caregiver This archetype prioritizes others over  themselves, often putting the needs of others before their own.

They tend to say yes  instinctively, guided by their caring nature. The Trickster The trickster is a playful character who seeks enjoyment and fun above  all else. Even when facing challenges, they are inclined to use humor, negotiation, and mischief  to navigate their way through the situation.

Doing research on the Jungian archetypes  and trying to determine which ones you see yourself the most can tell you a lot about  your subconscious. When you start to think about what archetypes you identify with you  will get to know yourself in an entirely new way. It can also help with shadow  work, determining the anima and animus, and your persona, because every archetype  carries positive and negative traits.

For example, imagine someone who is part of  ‘The Caregiver’ archetype. Their positive traits consist of their kindness and helpful  nature, which results in lots of loyal friends and good reputation. However, they might take care  of others to the point of neglecting themselves, or even grow bitter thanks to their own  insatiable urge to ignore their own needs.

When you get to know what archetypes you  identify with, you will get to know some of your strong and weak points, and will  know better how to balance them out. 6. Explore your self Jung once wrote "The privilege of a  lifetime is to become who you truly are.

" Another part of our inner workings is what Jung  called ‘the self. ’ If you imagine yourself as a circle - or mandala, as Jung loved to use  - the middle of the mandale is the ‘ego’, which is the conscious part of you, and around  it is the self. The self can be represented by a whole mandala; it contains every single  nook and cranny of your mind, the conscious, unconscious, and everything in between.

As  the center, the ego is only a small part of the self. There is also the shadow, anima,  animus, persona, and so much more in you. The self generally contains lots of opposites:  you are both an anrgy and calm person, part introvert and part extrovert, sometimes  stressed and other times relaxed.

When the self is in balance, all the parts of you get  their chance to shine when it is most helpful. It contains everything we are, everything  we once were, and everything we can be. The self is something so vast that it can be  explored throughout your whole life and you will always find something new.

Your search for  your self is never over. Continuously exploring the self is the key to individuality as well as  confidence in yourself and your own decisions. This is because your goal should be to make the  ego, your consciousness, as big as possible: to know as much about yourself as you  can.

The self is a sign that we should always continue to challenge ourselves and  ask ourselves questions - and the actions we take should be part of that, too. When  you have an important decision to make, it is the self - the entirety of you - that  you should explore. You have to look inwards, not outwards.

As Jung said, ‘Who looks  outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes. ’ You can only live the very best life and  become superior as a person if you always, always try to keep exploring your self.  By doing so, we can truly get to know and improve ourselves throughout our entire  lives.

This ends with us being finally free to explore who we truly are as individuals,  to find balance and to become anything we want to be. When you freely explore the self,  only then can you become who you truly are. 7.

Find Your Meaning In our final quote from Carl Jung for this video, he says “The sole purpose of human existence is  to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being. ” According to Jung, one of the biggest reasons for  unhappiness and the inability to feel better as a person, is when you don’t have anything to  believe in. Without religion, spirituality, science or philosophy, our lives do not only  seem boring, but also very arbitrarily unfair.

Or in other words: hopeless. We need to  have certain beliefs to find meaning in our lives. According to Jung, meaning will  grant you purpose: if your life has meaning, you know what you’re living for.

So there  must be some form of religion, spirituality, a philosophical maxim, scientific principle  or something else that you truly believe in. So, look inwards and think to yourself: what do I  believe in? What spiritual or religious beliefs, what moral principles, what values?

How do I act  on a daily basis? What do I expect from others? You could journal about these questions, or  meditate on them.

Finding what you believe in gives you the power to use it even more,  and consciously transform it into the most effective version it can be. It helps you to  both motivate yourself and see more in life. But don’t worry.

None of this means that you  have to become religious or a philosopher . It just means that you shouldn’t view life as  meaningless. Find a goal to work towards or ideals to adhere to.

All superior people in  the world consciously know what they live by and why. It is their way of taking control,  and it is what makes them so superior. If you enjoyed this video, please make  sure to check out our full philosophies for life playlist and for more videos to  help you find success and happiness using beautiful philosophical wisdom, don’t forget  to subscribe.

Thanks so much for watching.