Works Cited

Alonso, Facundo M. “What Is Reliance?” Canadian Journal of Philosophy, vol. 44, no. 2, Apr.
2014, pp. 163–183. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1080/00455091.2014.919722.

This article is fairly straightforward and addresses what reliance is and how it affects our
lives. Reliance, the author defines, is thoughts and actions that guide our lives from either
a theoretical or practical standpoint. Reliance is prevalent in many situations and is
different based on them. Not only do we rely on rope to keep us safe climbing, but it is
also the philosophy that creates lifelong bonds between humans. It can change based on
context and the breakage of it can be detrimental.

This simple yet powerful idea is what drives my philosophy. Self-sufficiency in nature is
the reliance on oneself for productivity which is much more difficult than relying on
other people. Additionally, choosing who you rely on and who relies on you is important
to maintaining a driven philosophical mindset.

Cucu, Marius Constantin, and Oana Elena Lenţa. "Philosophical Pragmatism in the Digital
Era." Postmodern Openings/Deschideri Postmoderne 5.1 (2014).

This article explains the function of the human-created digital area in the development of
our society and how it should be viewed because of this. The article explains that
pragmatism is a form of action and that although people view the digital era as crumbling
the lives of American’s, it should actually be viewed in a positive light as a great success
rather. Just like everything is good in moderation, technology must be used as a tool that
humans have created to further development. Even if it does have negative effects on the
human experience at times, technology is too important to the furthering of society that it
should be celebrated.

This philosophy is directly related to my philosophy as it sets a positive framework for

the idea of pragmatism. There is always a positive way to look at a situation and that is
the essence of being self-sufficient. Finding how to make a thrive in any situation through
action. Meaning things may not always be laid out for you, and instead you must change
your perspective to succeed in a situation.

Gao, Jie. "Self‐deception and pragmatic encroachment: A dilemma for epistemic

rationality." Ratio 34.1 (2021): 20-32.

Author Jie in this article argues that self-deception is not only bad, and can be a positive
thought in certain context. Self-deception is the process of using ill-evidence to persuade
yourself of something that is not true and can be a self-harm tactic. Jie runs through a
multitude of senarios where self-deception can satisfy pragmatic encroachment and how
the issue is more complex and requires analysis.

The important piece of this article in relation to my philosophy concerns pragmatic

encroachment which is pretty much that different situations require different pragmatic
 actions. This is important as self-sufficiency requires this situational awareness and open-
mindedness. The human experience is a collection of knowledge that should be used
correctly in each situation in order to achieve the highest success. The mindset aspect of
this approach allows the individual to focus their actions to better their self-sufficiency.

Haux, Reinhold, et al. "Information and communication technologies for promoting and
sustaining quality of life, health and self-sufficiency in ageing societies–outcomes of the
Lower Saxony Research Network Design of Environments for Ageing
(GAL)." Informatics for Health and Social Care 39.3-4 (2014): 166-187.

This article explains hwo the technologic software GAL is helping eldery individuals
become self-sufficient which is important as society as a whole is ageing. Researchers
found GAL to be a useful tool in increasing quality of life, health, and overall care when
applied correctly. The elderly population often pushback on the use of technology and
found more acceptance with the use of this software.

In efforts to appeal the philosophy to all demographics, this study illustrates that not only
should young adults be striving for self-sufficiency. Additionally, with the abundance of
technology in society, it should be used as a tool to achieve self- sufficiency. After all,
technology is the future, and without understanding it, it is harder to stay relevant in
society.

Iliopoulos, Adrian. "10 Key Lessons in the Art of Being Self-Reliant." The Quintessential Mind.
27 Apr. 2020. Web. 22 Apr. 2021.

This article explains 10 key lessons of being self-reliant and how strengthening the mind to
do so makes people around you better as well. Adopted from the philosopher Ralph Waldo
Emerson, self-reliance is a natural desire among individuals, therefore it is something we
will be comfortable in achieving. Self-reliance involves overcoming all these
misconceptions and fears that hold us back before we can discover our true potential.

Self-reliance, as the goal of my philosophy, requires the greatest understanding to be

achieved. Each lesson outlined in this article can provide another dimension to my
philosophy. It talks about our addiction to dependency, inability to love, and how the
process to dependency is slow and tedious. These are all aspects of my philosophy which
have been considered and help develop the tenants of my philosophy.

Kalis, Annemarie. "Self‐control as a normative capacity." Ratio31 (2018): 65-80.

This article aims to interrogate the social norms around self-control and whether they are
healthy for society. They question the 2 assumptions made about exercising self-control,
that being that self-control requires action and that it is inherently good. Vigorous debate
has shown that this is not always true and self-control can in fact be a poor trait that
doesn’t require action in certain situations. Additionally, introspection must be exercised
to determine if self-control is a trait that one should follow.
 As it relates to my philosophy, self-control is a pivotal step on the journey to self-
sufficiency. More than just having self-control all the time, this article has brought to
light the ignorant nature of the mechanism and rather using self-control should be
analyzed before simply doing or not doing something. Is one’s moral compass calibrated
so to exercise self-control? These are the questions that people following my philosophy
should ask themselves.

Lopez Frías, Francisco Javier. "Does play constitute the good life? Suits and Aristotle on
autotelicity and living well." Journal of the Philosophy of Sport 47.2 (2020): 168-182.

In this article, Author Lopez analyzes Aristotles interpretation of autotelic activities and
how they make an individual self- sufficient. Aristotle admits that the meaning of an
activity is what is derived from the end. The article continues by debating whether play,
which is defined as the “realization of a human capacity by means of a device”, is an
autotelic activity.

The ideas from this article focus on the philosophical roots of being self-sufficient.
Quoted on page 170 “To achieve happiness, people must engage in the activity for its
own sake – not for the sake of something else – and the activity must be sufficient to
make life desirable by itself”. Essentially, adopting a self suffient mindset at first may
bring joy through the end result, however; true happiness isn’t achieved until the act itself
has become enjoyable independent of the final result. Approaching problems with a
pragmatic mindset will allow the induvial to embark on these autotelic activities, rather
the act itself which is what matters. This is the essence of my philosophy.

Moore, Catherine. "What Is Self-Reliance and How to Develop It?" PositivePsychology.com. 15

Feb. 2021. Web. 22 Apr. 2021.

This article dives into the formation and misconceptions about the philosophy of self-
reliance. Self-reliance is more complex than a single sentence definition and can be related
to all aspects of life. The author outlines three examples which are thinking independently,
embracing individuality, and striving towards your own goals bravely. These are good in
showing that everyone is a different, and we should embrace that in creating our best self.
Goals for everyone can and will be different.

This article does a good job in showing that self-reliance will mean different things to
different people but will in the end show us how to be our best selves. This is the aspect
that ties everyone together in understanding the philosophy. We all need to look inward to
see what self-reliance and sufficiency looks to ourselves before we embark on this journey.
It’s a good idea to start small with our self-goals but should ramp up quickly when truly
attempting to achieve self-sufficiency.
Ştiuliuc, Diana. "The American Dream as the Cultural Expression of North American
Identity." Philologica Jassyensia7.2 (14) (2011): 363-370.

This article analyzes how the American dream has changed the mentality in the US. Even
though the American dream has not been clearly defined, the prospect of freedom and
providing for oneself has driven the cultural identity. This shift has allowed for
acceptance of many different cultures that is why American society is often referred to as
the melting pot

This is important to my philosophy as it shows the acceptance that exists within

American society to set these self- sufficient goals. Embarking in the philosophy in an
accepting culture will not only foster confidence but allow for more success. Because of
this, participants should be more willing and ready for change.

Stroe, Silvia, Vinit Parida, and Joakim Wincent. "Effectuation or causation: An fsQCA analysis
of entrepreneurial passion, risk perception, and self-efficacy." Journal of Business
Research 89 (2018): 265-272.

This paper explores the entrepreneurial decision-making process and analyzes a Native
American entrepreneur. Specifically, which scenarios catalyze effectual vs. causal
decision-making tactics while measuring passion, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and risk
perception in those individuals. Although the researchers did not find significant data that
these variables have an effect, it provided insight into the intricacies of the variables.
Most notable that the passionate entrepreneurs exercised higher levels of reasoning in
decision making.

This is important to the philosophy as the entrepreneurial mindset aligns well in many
regards. In its most basic form, entrepreneurism is the attempt to be self-employed
through one’s own hard work and require traits such as passion, grit, and strong work
ethic. Additionally, passion is found in this sense to be a trait that allows good decisions
to be made and that passion is not blinding and rather guiding.