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About The Daily Stoic Book
From the team that brought youĀ The Obstacle Is the WayĀ andĀ Ego Is the Enemy, a beautiful daily devotional of Stoic meditationsāan instant Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestseller.
Why have history's greatest mindsāfrom George Washington to Frederick the Great to Ralph Waldo Emerson, along with today's top performers from Super Bowl-winning football coaches to CEOs and celebritiesāembraced the wisdom of the ancient Stoics? Because they realize that the most valuable wisdom is timeless and that philosophy is for living a better life, not a classroom exercise.
The Daily Stoic offers 366 days of Stoic insights and exercises, featuring all-new translations from the Emperor Marcus Aurelius, the playwright Seneca, or slave-turned-philosopher Epictetus, as well as lesser-known luminaries like Zeno, Cleanthes, and Musonius Rufus. Every day of the year you'll find one of their pithy, powerful quotations, as well as historical anecdotes, provocative commentary, and a helpful glossary of Greek terms.
By following these teachings over the course of a year (and, indeed, for years to come) you'll find the serenity, self-knowledge, and resilience you need to live well.Ā
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Wherever a person can live, there one can also live well;
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Do now what nature demands of you. Get right to it if that's in your power. Don't wait for the perfect timing.
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Don't tell yourself anything more than what the initial impressions report.
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My Takeaways from the book The Daily Stoic
I try to implement at least a few things from a non-fiction book that I read. Here are a few I try to implement from the book The Daily Stoic:
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There's this ideology about being prepared to withstand any difficult situations and one way is to get used to hardship.
I take at least 1 cold shower in a month.
This may seem easy but consciously choosing to do so is where it is difficult. It also let's you appreciate the comforts we take for granted so easily.
There are few other suggestions in the book to try walking on barefoot for a day, try living out of ā¹50 - ā¹100 (about a dollar's worth money) for a day.
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It is impossible for a person to begin to learn what he thinks he already knows.
Have accepted the fact that I didn't know about many things at work and life in general.
It is humbling and that's the reality too, we don't know about many things in life. When we accept this we give room to learn.
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āOf all people only those are at leisure who make time for philosophy, only they truly live. Not
satisfied to merely keep good watch over their own days, they annex every age to their own. All
the harvest of the past is added to their store. Only an ingrate would fail to see that these great
architects of venerable thoughts were born for us and have designed a way of life for us.ā
āSENECA
117
Some of us are stressed. Others are overworked. Perhaps youāre struggling with the new responsibilities of parenthood. Or the chaos of a new venture. Or are you already successful and grappling with the duties of power or influence? Wrestling with an addiction? Deeply in love? Or moving from one flawed relationship to another? Are you approaching your golden years? Or enjoying the spoils of youth? Busy and active? Or bored out of your mind. Wisdom from the Stoics that can help.Ā
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āThe chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own . . .ā
āEPICTETUS, DISCOURSES, 2.5.4ā5
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Meditation on Mortality
Everything lasts for a day, the one who remembers and the remembered.
~Marcus Aurelius
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You can take the bite out of any tough situation by bringing a calm mind to it. By considering it and meditating on it in advance.
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The following little reminder sums up the three most essential part of Stoic philosophy worth carrying with you every day:
1. Control your perceptions
2. Direct your actions properly
3. Willingly accept what's outside of your control
That's all we need to do.
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The Stoics remind us that there really is no such thing as an objectively good or bad occurrence. Situations require our participation, context and categorization in order to be "bad".
Our reaction is what actually decides whether harm has occurred. If we raise our voice because we feel weāre being confronted, naturally a confrontation will ensue.
But if we retain control of ourselves, we decide whether to label something good or bad.
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Marcus Aurelius was reminded that no matter how much he conquered, no matter how much he inflicted his will on the world, it would be like building a castle in the sandāsoon to be erased by the winds of time.
Eventually, all of us will pass away and slowly be forgotten. We should enjoy this brief time we have on earthānot be enslaved to emotions that make us miserable and dissatisfied.
121
Most people resist the idea of a true self-estimate, probably because they fear it might mean downgrading some of their beliefs about who they are and what theyāre capable of.
As Goetheās maxim goes, it is a great failing āto see yourself as more than you are" and it is equally damaging to āvalue yourself at less than your true worth.ā
We underestimate our capabilities just as much and just as dangerously as we overestimate other abilities. Cultivate the ability to judge yourself accurately and honestly. Look inward to discern what youāre capable of and what it will take to unlock that potential.
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Lessons for daily life
"The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own ā¦"
20
āHow many have laid waste to your life when you werenāt aware of what you were losing , how much was wasted in pointless grief, foolish joy, greedy desire, and social amusementsā how little of your own was left to you. You will realize you are dying before your time!ā
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Amor Fati [A love of fate]
It's not just accepting,
it's loving everything that happens.
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No matter how much preparation, no matter how skilled or smart we are, the ultimate outcome is in the lap of the gods. The sooner we know that, the better we will be.
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āIt's not that we have little time, but more that we waste a good deal of it.ā
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āFirst learn the meaning of what you say, and then speak.ā
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Consequently, this means that before you act on an impression, you should always pause and consider what assumptions you've brought to the decision. Ask yourself questions like āWhat could I have overlooked here?ā or perhaps "Is it possible Iām wrong about this?ā
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