The Art of Living a Meaningless Existence

Book excerpt: A collection of essays that journey through philosophy and grapple with the increasingly relevant problem of finding meaning in what appears, for many of us, to be an inherently meaningless existence. Without any of the sugarcoating often found in the modern hyper-positive self-help genres, Robert Pantano attempts to provide the value of motivation and personal development through unwavering philosophical honesty. Studying and pulling from ideas in Stoicism, Existentialism, Nihilism, Absurdism, Buddhism, Taoism, and more, he combines his own thoughts with concepts from philosophy to create accessible, thought-provoking, and beautiful takeaways that will change the way you think about yourself, existence, and how to appreciate the absurdity of it all. Most of the essays contained in this book were originally published as videos seen by tens of millions of people on Pantano's popular YouTube channel, Pursuit of Wonder. Because of their popularity, he has created an organized collection of revised essays gathered in the form of this book. Not only have the essays been improved and revised, but Pantano has also added additional essays containing deeper insights about the overarching subjects covered and why he has personally found them valuable. Driven by a sense of doubt, skepticism, fascination, and a yearning for awe, The Art of Living a Meaningless Existence inspires readers to embark on their own pursuit of wonder.