The Daily Stoic17 Des 2018

Here Are Signs You’re Making Progress

Ok, you’ve been doing your reading and your journaling. You’re trying to be conscious of your thoughts and your actions. In short, you’re putting in the work.

The question is, how do you know if it’s working? The journey to becoming a “sage” is one that takes a lifetime. No one hands you a certificate. Wisdom accumulates and builds on itself until one day, well, there you are. If that feels a little too inexact, we empathize, but such is life.

Still, there has to be something we can look for to see whether we are making progress. Whether we are getting better as opposed to simply feeling better (or more dangerously, feeling self-satisfied?)

According to Epictetus, these are signs that someone is making progress:

-criticizing nobody

-praising nobody

-blaming nobody

-accusing nobody

-saying nothing about themselves to indicate being someone or knowing something

-when frustrated or impeded, they blame themselves

-if complimented, they laugh

-if criticized, they ignore

-relaxed in motivation

-banishing harmful desire

-they watch themselves as though they were an enemy plotting an attack

If you’re really doing the work, you will see yourself improve in these areas. Not all the time and certainly not in all of them all at once. But you will blame others less, ignore criticism more readily (and ignore leveling it at others). You will be humbler and desire less. You will take responsibility. You will examine yourself.

That’s progress.

The question for you today is: Are you making any?

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

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(3067)

Kate Bowler Challenges Stoicism’s Most Famous Idea

One of Stoicism’s most famous ideas does not sit right with bestselling author Kate Bowler. In this episode, Ryan and Kate discuss the pressure this idea can place on people facing illness, grief, and...

26 Jul 0s

9 Stoic Habits For A Better Life

Virtue is like any other skill. It’s not something you either have or you don’t. It’s something you practice, and the more you practice it, the better you become. This was Aristotle’s fundamental insi...

25 Jul 0s

BONUS | Made For Working Together

According to the Stoics, we humans have a higher obligation—not to the gods but to each other. 📔 Pick up your own leather bound signed edition of The Daily Stoic! Check it out at the Daily Stoic Stor...

24 Jul 0s

We Are All Kings Now | Why We Can’t Stop Talking About The Odyssey

You’re the king now. The Republic is in your hands. Can you keep it?-- Featured guests in order of appearance: Kenny Curtis | Full episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTubeStephen Greenblatt | Full ...

24 Jul 0s

They Have Been Misled | The Road Trip That Put Stoicism To The Test

If we want people to change, we have to give them a way to see the truth for themselves.👉 Watch Ryan Holiday on Mike Herrera's Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HEuo5HxHiQ📚 Join the Quarterl...

23 Jul 0s

Is It Even Possible To Be Happy?

A master does not actually master anything. The Stoics understood this.👉 The Daily Stoic Habits for Success, Habits for Happiness course is a six-week challenge designed to change your entire relatio...

22 Jul 0s

How Epictetus Captured The Mind Of Marcus Aurelius

One of history’s most powerful rulers was shaped by a teacher he never met. In this episode, Ryan talks with Professor William O. Stephens about how Marcus Aurelius discovered Epictetus, why the forme...

22 Jul 0s

This Is How You Change | What Is Our Duty To Society?

Change is hard but it doesn’t mean you have to be hard on yourself.📚 Books Mentioned: In My Time Of Dying 👉 The Daily Stoic Habits for Success, Habits for Happiness course is a six-week challenge de...

21 Jul 0s