Socratic Thinking as a Personal Practice: Self-Inquiry, Decisions, and Humility

The deepest benefit of the Socratic method comes from turning the questions on yourself. The same techniques that open up other people's thinking can open up your own assumptions, blind spots, and beliefs that have gone unexamined for years. This course is about that personal practice. You will work through written reflections and planning exercises that develop a sustainable practice of self-inquiry without becoming anxious or self-absorbed. The course respects that genuine self-questioning is harder than it sounds. What you'll learn: - Apply Socratic questions to your own beliefs, assumptions, and recurring decisions - Use structured self-inquiry around career, relationships, finances, and major commitments - Develop a journaling practice that supports honest examination without spiraling into anxiety - Strengthen intellectual humility by surfacing assumptions you did not know you held - Manage the discomfort that genuine self-questioning often produces - Plan a sustained practice that compounds across years and life stages The course begins with self-application, moves through structured inquiry around major life areas, journaling practice, intellectual humility, managing discomfort, and finishes with sustained practice. A capstone written exercise asks you to draft a one-year self-inquiry plan grounded in your honest current questions. This course is designed for thoughtful adults committed to personal growth, including students, professionals, and anyone in a life transition. It is approachable for committed beginners willing to do the foundational work first. No specific background is required. The course is about lifelong practice rather than tactics that age within months.