Why You Should Read Biographies
The Daily Stoic13 Maalis 2019

Why You Should Read Biographies

“I don’t have time to read a book that long,” you might say when someone recommends one of those epic volumes from the Ron Chernows and Robert Caros and Stacy Schiffs of the world. And Alban Butler’s The Lives of the Saints? Or Plutarch? Who has time to read that dusty old collection about the lives of the ancient Greeks and Romans?

The answer is that you do. Or rather, that you should make time to study the greats of history.

In Book Four of Meditations, Marcus writes::

“And then you might see what the life of a good man is like—someone content with what nature assigns him, and satisfied with being just and kind himself.”

What’s the “if” that came before the “then” he is referring to? We can only guess. That is the entirety of his writing on this point. But not unlike a Jeopardy answer with multiple possible questions, this one fits:

What is it to study history and biographies?

Marcus and Seneca and Epictetus were all intimately familiar with the lives of the greats (and not-so-greats) that came before them. And in this study they had come to know, as Marcus said, what a good life looked like. They learned from the experiences and the follies of the earlier generations—they saw across the pages of many books why contentment and justice and kindness were so important (and the perils of the opposite traits).

So make a commitment today—this month, this year—to start reading more biographies. It’s an important step in the path to wisdom.

P.S. If you want to try any of a lot of books for free, you might like Scribd, which is essentially Netflix for books. Click here to sign up for a one month free trial of unlimited audiobooks and ebooks plus free subscription to magazines like Bloomberg Business Week, The Atlantic, Foreign Policy, Fortune and the New York Times. Sign up today.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jaksot(2884)

The Discipline That Made Marcus Aurelius

The Discipline That Made Marcus Aurelius

The greatness of Antoninus and Marcus Aurelius was not perfection but progress. They were imperfect men committed to self-discipline and self-correction. Today's episode explores how Antoninus shaped ...

28 Helmi 30min

Who Would Ever Want to Be King? | Stop Letting Yourself Off the Hook

Who Would Ever Want to Be King? | Stop Letting Yourself Off the Hook

Power doesn’t wait for the perfect person to raise their hand. Someone will wield it. Someone always does.📚 Looking for stories to teach your kids about Stoicism? Check out Ryan Holiday’s books: The ...

27 Helmi 8min

BONUS | 3 Practices to Improve Your Life In a Week

BONUS | 3 Practices to Improve Your Life In a Week

What if it only took five minutes each morning to feel more in control of your life? In this conversation, Dr. Rangan Chatterjee shares the three daily questions he uses to stay grounded in alignment,...

26 Helmi 10min

It Picks You Up. It Puts You Down. A Hundred Times A Day. | Cultivate Indifference

It Picks You Up. It Puts You Down. A Hundred Times A Day. | Cultivate Indifference

Is this what we’re here for? To be the passions’ slave? To be the plaything of emotions and impulses? It can’t be!📓 Pick up a copy of The Daily Stoic Journal: 366 Days of Writing and Reflection on Th...

26 Helmi 7min

You Can’t Join Them

You Can’t Join Them

People are the way they are. They will always be this way. We don’t control that. 👉 Support the podcast and go deeper into Stoicism by subscribing to The Daily Stoic Premium - unlock ad-free listenin...

25 Helmi 1min

Lincoln’s Secret Weapon (It Wasn’t Power)

Lincoln’s Secret Weapon (It Wasn’t Power)

How do you hold a country together when it’s tearing itself apart? In this episode, Ryan sits down with Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin to talk about Abraham Lincoln’s self-educa...

25 Helmi 47min

This is The Math That Losers Do | What Virtue Is This Moment Asking of You?

This is The Math That Losers Do | What Virtue Is This Moment Asking of You?

The past is gone, and no amount of calculation will bring it back or make it fair. What we do have is agency right now.🎥 Watch the video of today's episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1zgK...

24 Helmi 10min

This is How You Win the Day | Circumstances Have No Care For Our Feelings

This is How You Win the Day | Circumstances Have No Care For Our Feelings

We have a duty. Our nature—justice—demands something from us. It demands that we get up, get after it, and wear ourselves down doing it.📘 Grab a copy of The Daily Stoic here: https://store.dailystoic...

23 Helmi 8min

Suosittua kategoriassa Liike-elämä ja talous

sijotuskasti
mimmit-sijoittaa
psykopodiaa-podcast
rss-rahapodi
rss-rahamania
ostan-asuntoja-podcast
pomojen-suusta
juristipodi
rss-myyntikoulu
rss-seuraava-potilas
rss-lahtijat
rss-draivi
leadcast
rahapuhetta
sijoitusovi-podcast
asuntoasiaa-paivakirjat
rss-startup-ministerio
rss-sisalto-kuntoon
oppimisen-psykologia
bakkari-tarinoita-tapahtumien-takahuoneista