Things Don’t Make The Man
The Daily Stoic27 Touko 2019

Things Don’t Make The Man

It’s very easy to associate our possessions and our positions with our identity. There’s even an expression to that effect: The clothes make the man. When we have a powerful job, we feel powerful. When the market is hot, we feel like we have a knack for investing. When we are number one in our space, in our industry, in sales, we’re very into checking and monitoring the rankings. When people are saying nice things about us, we revel in it, because of course it’s all true and deserved.

If everything stays well, it’s hard to see what the downside of this approach is (excepting the ego that can often creep in). It’s only when the screw turns that we realize how dangerous this has all been. Because when you associate your identity with externals when things are good, it’s impossible not to associate your identity when suddenly the same externals are showing you to be a loser or a fool or the object of other people’s contempt.

The Stoics would urge you to remember that things don’t make the man. Not now, not ever. Epictetus reminds us that just because someone has more money than you doesn’t make them superior. No, only their bank balance is superior. If someone is an eloquent speaker, that doesn’t make them better than you either. It just means they have better diction. “You yourself,” he says, “are neither property nor diction.”

Nope. You’re you. And you’re not measured or made by externals, or anything that is outside your control. What matter is who you are on the inside. What matters is what you do with the choices and situations that are inside your control. What matters is how you ride out the highs and the lows, and ideally are changed by neither of them.


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

Jaksot(2921)

Jordan Klepper: How to Talk to People You Disagree With (Without Losing It) | PT. 1

Jordan Klepper: How to Talk to People You Disagree With (Without Losing It) | PT. 1

What do you do when someone says something you completely disagree with or something that sounds totally detached from reality? Jordan Klepper, correspondent and host at The Daily Show, is known for w...

4 Maalis 40min

Now Is The Time

Now Is The Time

It’s been a long winter. But now? Now you can feel something is in the air. 💡 Go to dailystoic.com/spring and enter code DSPOD20 at checkout to get 20% off the Spring Forward Challenge! Challenge you...

4 Maalis 2min

You Can’t Forget What You Don’t Put Off | (Dis)integration

You Can’t Forget What You Don’t Put Off | (Dis)integration

We plan to do it. We mean to do it. We just tell ourselves that we’ll do it tomorrow. The problem, as the Stoics remind us, is that we don’t control tomorrow.👉 Support the podcast and go deeper into ...

3 Maalis 8min

They’re Not Wrong (They’re Just Cut Off From Truth) | What Expensive Things Cost

They’re Not Wrong (They’re Just Cut Off From Truth) | What Expensive Things Cost

Haven’t you been wrong before? Haven’t you done stuff that in retrospect seems dumb or weird? Of course you have.📚 Books Mentioned: Great Gatsby: 100th Anniversary Deluxe EditionMeditations by Marcus...

2 Maalis 7min

Why Thinking About Your Death Will Save Your Life

Why Thinking About Your Death Will Save Your Life

Meditating on death isn’t depressing, it’s clarifying. In this episode, Ryan explains how the Stoic practice of Memento Mori will sharpen your priorities, push you to stop wasting time, and remind you...

1 Maalis 17min

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

Suosittua kategoriassa Liike-elämä ja talous

sijotuskasti
mimmit-sijoittaa
rss-rahapodi
psykopodiaa-podcast
herrasmieshakkerit
ostan-asuntoja-podcast
rahapuhetta
rss-rahamania
rss-lahtijat
rss-seuraava-potilas
leadcast
rss-merja-mahkan-rahat
rss-40-ajatusta-aanesta
rss-porssipuhetta
rss-levosta-kasin-yrittajyys
rss-sisalto-kuntoon
rss-vaikuttavan-opettajan-vierella
rss-ma
rss-bisneksen-pehmea-puoli
rss-draivi