Public Philosopher Gives World Philosophy Day Lecture on True Success
A large audience attended NC State University’s eighth World Philosophy Day Lecture on the afternoon of Friday, November 22, 2024. The speaker was Dr. Tom Morris, a former professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame who for the last thirty years has made a name for himself as a dynamic speaker, innovative business thinker, and prolific author of books on the practical side of philosophy. His lecture was titled “True Success: The Art of Achievement in Times of Change.”
World Philosophy Day has been celebrated internationally on the third Thursday of November since 2002. It was officially proclaimed by UNESCO in 2005 to celebrate and advance philosophy as “a discipline that encourages critical and independent thought … capable of working towards a better understanding of the world and promoting tolerance and peace.”
Jaeli Marti, president of the Philosophy Club at NC State, introduced Morris, whose more than thirty books include Philosophy for Dummies, Stoicism for Dummies (with Gregory Bassham), If Aristotle Ran General Motors, and Plato’s Lemonade Stand: Stirring Change into Something Great. His academic books include Anselmian Explorations: Essays in Philosophical Theology, Making Sense of It All: Pascal and the Meaning of Life, and Our Idea of God: An Introduction to Philosophical Theology.
Morris, a native of Durham and long time resident of Wilmington, NC, has spoken to over 1,200 audiences that include many of the world’s largest companies, as well as groups of business creators, top executives, and leaders across industries. His clients include Ford Motor Company, the US Air Force, Bank of America, Toyota, General Electric, Hewlett Packard, Target, Walmart, Merrill Lynch, UBS, General Motors, Verizon, Prudential, the American Hospital Association, the National Association of Realtors, NBC Sports, Smuckers, Mattell, Campbell Soup, and Minute Maid.
In his humorous and entertaining presentation, Morris drew on insights from the great philosophers of history to illuminate what he calls the “Seven Cs” of success. These philosophers included Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoic philosopher and Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, Ralph Waldo Emerson, William James, and the 20th century Harvard philosopher Robert Nozick.
The talk was followed by a thoughtful question and answer period, after which students continued to engage with Morris for over an hour. One student later reflected that the event felt like “the greatest experience of my life.”
For his part, Morris was deeply impressed by his visit: “It was SUCH a great experience for me! I’m very impressed with the students and their eagerness to think hard about things that matter to them. I wish you could have overheard all the questions afterwards, with a couple of people tearing up and everyone so glad to have the chance to talk about things that worry them, or concern them, or give them hope.”
Interested readers can learn more about Morris’ work at www.tomvmorris.com.
