ABSTRACT
Existential philosophy concerns itself with the fundamentals of human existence such as individual freedom, responsibility, choice, meaning, purpose and authenticity. The influence of Socrates is still keenly felt, as is philosophy’s concern with the quest to both know thyself and be thyself, particularly in a branch of philosophy known as existentialism. It is the Dane, Soren Kierkegaard, who is generally considered the founder of existential philosophy. He focused most of his work on ethics, morality and the psychology and philosophy of religion. In The Saturated Self, Professor Kenneth Gergen also forewarns of the problems for humanity’s search for authenticity in post-modern times. Authentic people create an individual purpose and direction for their lives that can’t be understood purely in terms of external meaning or purpose. The method of non-prescriptive and vicarious social learning is a technique at the heart of the coaching approach to Authentic Leadership Development.
