Since the beginning of time, people have been searching for ways to live better, happier, and more productive lives. Friedrich Nietzsche — a German philosopher — believed that he had found the secret.
“My formula for greatness in a human being is Amor Fati: that one wants nothing to be different, not forward, not backward, not in all eternity. Not merely bear what is necessary, still less conceal it—all idealism is mendacity in the face of what is necessary—but love it,” said Nietzsche.
Amor Fati (which translates to “love of fate”) is something that the world almost forces you to understand. Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has served as the strongest example of how ruthless life can be.
When the pandemic hit America in March, many of us had no clue what to do. We were scared. We were nervous. We didn’t know what the future held. Now — in November — it appears that the world is returning to some form of normal.
But of course, we didn’t know this in the spring. Many people were locked in their houses with no opportunity to work or earn money. It is likely that most of the people that were able to stay sane during the quarantine adopted some form of mindset that relates to Amor Fati.
Instead of complaining about their circumstances or cursing fate, we must not only accept what is happening in our lives, but we must love what has happened. We must love our fate.
Viktor Frankl — a psychologist and the author of Man’s Search For Meaning — was stuck in a Nazi concentration camp. While many people around him crumbled due to the unthinkable tragedy that surrounded them, Frankl made the choice to control what he could control. And what he could control in this situation was his attitude. “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way,” wrote Frankl.
To survive the hell that he was put through, Frankl held his head high and chose to have a positive attitude about his situation.
If Viktor Frankl can love his fate in one of the most deadly concentration camps, then we can certainly love our fate in any circumstance.
One of the most famous and accomplished authors in the world, Robert Greene, has found inspiration in Amor Fati. In an interview with Ryan Holiday, Greene said, “Through Nietzsche, I discovered Amor Fati. I just fell in love with the concept because the power that you can have in life by accepting your fate is so immense that it’s almost hard to fathom. You feel that everything happens for a purpose, and that it is up to you to make this purpose something positive and active.”
Before he became a successful author, Greene estimates that he worked 80 jobs. Obviously, this is not where he wanted to be. But, the journey that Greene went through helped propel him to get to where he is now. Using Amor Fati, he got through the difficult times.
Even ancient philosophers were able to use the concept of Amor Fati to help them battle unfortunate events. In Meditations, Marcus Aurelius wrote, “You have power over your mind — not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
Epictetus, who was a slave for a good portion of his life, also believed in loving fate. “Do not seek for things to happen the way you want them to; rather, wish that what happens happens the way it happens: then you will be happy,” he wrote.
You probably know Thomas Edison for being one of the most famous inventors in history. But what you may not know is that he had one of the most popular embodiments of what Amor Fati could look like.
It was just a normal day until a giant fire broke out at Edison’s research facility. While the rest of the city rushed to the scene in an attempt to contain the massive fire, Edison remained calm and cool-headed. With all of his life’s work going up in flames, he found his son and told him: “Go get your mother and all her friends. They’ll never see a fire like this again.”
Instead of panicking or getting upset about everything that he lost, Edison decided that the fire had “Just got rid of a lot of rubbish.”
In this situation, Edison realized that he could not stop the fire. He made a choice to enjoy the spectacle, even though he was seeing all of his hard work transform into ashes. In the moment of chaos, he wished for nothing to be different. He loved what fate had given him.
The love of fate can take one to incredible heights. Not only will you be more successful, but also much happier.
On the front of an Amor Fati pendant that I wear every day, there is a flame. The flame represents one of my favorite Marcus Aurelius quotes: “A blazing fire makes flame and brightness out of everything that is thrown into it.”
If you choose to complain and moan about everything that happens in your life, you are pouring gallons of water on your fire. But when you adopt an Amor Fati mindset, it doesn’t matter what happens in life.
You get a raise. More wood on your fire.
You get fired from your job. More wood on your fire.
A project that you have been working on fails. More wood on your fire.
You achieve a personal goal that you have been working toward. More wood on your fire.
It doesn’t matter. Good, bad, and sad things will happen in your life. But with Amor Fati, all of these things can just add fuel to your flame.