What is Existentialism? (12 Practical Ways to Apply it in Your Life!)
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Existentialism in Everyday Life: What It Is and How to Apply It
Last updated: 14 September 2026 · By Spencer Li, CFTe
Existentialism is the idea that life has no built-in meaning, so each person is free, and responsible, to create their own. There is no purpose handed down by a higher power or a fixed external order. That sounds bleak at first. In practice it is the opposite. If nobody assigns your meaning, then nobody can take it from you either. You apply existentialism by accepting that your choices are yours, living by values you actually picked rather than inherited, getting comfortable with uncertainty, and using the fact that your time is finite as a reason to live deliberately now. The payoff is a real sense of ownership over your own life, more honest self-reflection, and the freedom to be authentic instead of performing a script someone else wrote.
Here is where it comes from, what it actually claims, and the concrete ways you can put it to work.
What is existentialism?
Existentialism is a philosophical movement that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It puts the individual at the centre: your freedom, your choices, and your responsibility for the meaning you make.
A few core claims sit underneath it.
First, you are responsible for your own meaning. There is no pre-set purpose waiting to be discovered, so you cannot outsource the question to tradition, religion, or other people. You decide, and you live with the consequences.
Second, your experience is your own (subjectivity, the idea that each person sees the world from a viewpoint nobody else fully shares). There is no single objective truth you can stand on. There is only the world as you actually meet it.
Third, there is a built-in aloneness to being human. Nobody else can live your life or face your death for you. That isolation can feel like anxiety and alienation. It can also be a quiet kind of freedom, because if you are truly the author here, you get to write the thing.
Where did existentialism come from?
Existentialism grew out of a fast-changing world. The industrial revolution and the rise of science and technology left a lot of people feeling disconnected from the old sources of meaning, and this philosophy was one way of making sense of that.
The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard is often called the “father of existentialism”. He wrote about the individual’s subjective experience and the weight of personal choice, and he kept faith and a personal relationship with God at the centre of it.
The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche rejected inherited morality and religion and put the emphasis on the individual’s will. His ideas laid the groundwork for much of what followed.
The movement was popularised in the mid-20th century by Jean-Paul Sartre, Martin Heidegger, and others. Sartre focused on freedom and personal responsibility for one’s own existence. Heidegger focused on the question of being, the idea that you have to understand your own existence before you can understand the world around you.
The reach went well past philosophy. Existentialism shaped literature, theatre, film, and art, and it is still influential today.
What are the benefits of existentialism?
The main benefits:
- It empowers the individual. Once you accept that you are the one making meaning, you stop waiting for permission and start acting with a real sense of agency.
- It encourages self-reflection. Questioning your own existence is uncomfortable, but it leads to a deeper read on who you actually are and where you fit.
- It promotes authenticity. The goal is to live by your own lights rather than chasing external validation or conforming to a default. That is where genuine fulfilment tends to come from.
- It is honest about how hard life is. There is no tidy, objective answer to the question of existence, and existentialism does not pretend otherwise. It lets you hold the complexity instead of papering over it.
- It rewards individuality and creativity. If you are building your own meaning, you are free to express yourself in ways that are genuinely yours.
Do note that it has its critics. The same philosophy can be read as bleak or pessimistic, and it can lean so far into the individual that it underweights the social, economic, and political forces that shape people’s lives. Worth holding both.
How do you apply existentialism in your life?
Here is the practical part. These are not steps to complete in order, they are habits to combine in whatever way fits you.
- Accept responsibility for your choices. You set the direction of your life, and you own the consequences. That is sobering and freeing at the same time.
- Embrace freedom and choice. You have the power to shape your own path. You are not locked into societal expectations or some predetermined track.
- Recognise the inherent meaninglessness of life. This sounds harsh, but it is liberating. If there is no pre-defined purpose to find, you can stop hunting for it and start building your own.
- Create your own values. Reflect on what actually matters to you, then work to line your actions up with it, instead of running on values you never chose.
- Embrace uncertainty. Get comfortable with ambiguity. Treat the unknown as room to grow rather than something to flee.
- Practise mindfulness. Being present with your own thoughts, feelings, and actions helps you connect with your real self and live more deliberately.
- Develop authenticity. Be true to your own values. Stop living by what other people expect of you.
- Cultivate self-awareness. Notice your thoughts and feelings, and ask what is really driving your actions, so your choices line up with who you are.
- Seek out new experiences. Growth tends to live just outside the comfort zone. Try new things, new hobbies, new places.
- Find your own purpose. This is rarely a single lightning bolt. It is usually a slow process of testing different activities, values, and goals until something fits.
- Practise self-acceptance. Accept yourself as you are rather than contorting to fit someone else’s mould. It also makes you more accepting of other people.
- Reflect on your own mortality. Your time is finite and it will end. Sitting with that, rather than dodging it, is what sharpens the present moment and pushes you to live with intent.
Famous examples of existentialist thinkers
Existentialism runs through the work of a lot of well-known figures. Here is a quick map of who shaped it and the line each is remembered for.
| Thinker | Known for | A line they are remembered by |
|---|---|---|
| Jean-Paul Sartre (French philosopher) | Radical freedom and personal responsibility; you must create your own meaning | “Man is condemned to be free.” |
| Friedrich Nietzsche (German philosopher) | Critique of inherited morality; the individual transcending it | “Become who you are.” |
| Albert Camus (French writer and philosopher) | The meaninglessness of life and the rebellion of living freely anyway | “The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” |
| Martin Heidegger (German philosopher) | The question of being; living authentically and true to yourself | |
| Simone de Beauvoir (French philosopher and feminist) | Individual freedom and challenging the roles society assigns | “One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.” |
Do note that none of these figures were existentialists and nothing else. Their thinking ranged wider than this one movement, and their ideas get read and applied differently depending on who is doing the reading.
Concluding thoughts
Existentialism asks you to take responsibility for your own life and your own choices, instead of leaning on inherited morality or religion to decide for you. It pushes self-reflection, it rewards authenticity, and it says you have to understand your own existence before the rest of the world makes sense.
It is a demanding philosophy. For anyone willing to sit with it, though, the return is a real sense of empowerment, honest self-reflection, and the freedom to live as yourself.
The next time you feel lost or uncertain, remember the core of it: you have the power to create your own meaning and purpose.
So, now that you have what existentialism is and the concrete ways to apply it, is this a life philosophy you would actually adopt? And for those already living it, what other ways have you put existentialism to work? Let me know in the comments.
FAQ
What is existentialism in simple terms?
Existentialism is the view that life has no built-in meaning, so each person is free, and responsible, to create their own meaning and live by values they actually chose.
Who is the father of existentialism?
The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard is usually called the father of existentialism. He wrote about subjective experience, personal choice, and the individual’s relationship with God.
What is the main idea of existentialism?
That existence comes before any assigned purpose. You are not handed a meaning by a higher power or a fixed order, so you have to take responsibility for creating it yourself.
Is existentialism pessimistic?
It can read that way, since it accepts that life is hard and has no objective answer. But many people find it empowering, because it puts authorship of your own life back in your hands.
How can I apply existentialism in daily life?
Own your choices, choose your own values, get comfortable with uncertainty, stay present through mindfulness, seek out new experiences, and use the fact that your time is finite as a reason to live deliberately.
About the author. Spencer Li is the founder of Synapse Trading and a Certified Financial Technician (CFTe) with 15+ years of trading across stocks, forex, crypto, commodities, and bonds. He holds a B.Acc and B.BM from SMU. His trade log is public: every trade since April 2024, dated, losses left in. He has traded since 2007 and taught since 2012. His routine takes about 15 minutes a day, one system for any market, and he writes on the wider question of how to live a deliberate, examined life.
This is a personal reflection, not financial advice. Synapse Trading is not licensed by MAS to advise on investment products. Trading carries risk of loss; past performance is not indicative of future results.
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Educational content only, not personalised financial advice. Trading carries risk, including loss of capital. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Synapse Trading is not licensed or regulated by MAS.
