The Daily Stoic9 Apr 2019

All That Matters Is How We Respond

It was the great Athenian leader, Pericles, who said that there was nothing wrong with poverty. It could be caused by so many things—a business failure, the sudden loss of a family’s breadwinner, theft, even just plain old back luck. Like the Stoics, he knew that Fortune could swoop in, and, in the blink of an eye, undo years of hard work and careful planning.

But Pericles would not have said, as religious leaders and populist demagogues have tried to argue for thousands of years, that there was anything special or holy about poverty. While it wasn’t necessarily someone’s fault they were poor, and so they shouldn’t be judged for it, Pericles said, there was “real shame...in not taking steps to escape it.”

This too matches with the Stoic attitude, both about poverty and any fate Fortune might throw at us. Stuff is going to happen. We are going to experience setbacks. Some of us are going to experience major setbacks--in terms of where we are born, what our parents were like, how other people see members of our race or gender--and none of that is fair or says anything about who we are as people. How could it? We didn’t have anything to do with it happening.

But how we respond to those situations--be it poverty or disability or a bad upbringing--hell, that we respond at all, well, that says everything about who we are. Are there big systemic problems too? That will require coordination and political action? Absolutely. But in the meantime, we can start taking our individual steps right now, right this morning, big or small.

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(3110)

Stoic Lessons From 3 Cities in 3 Days

A chaotic few days on the road gave Ryan plenty of opportunities to practice what the Stoics taught. Between disrupted travel plans and visits to museums honoring Thomas Edison, Abraham Lincoln, and R...

27 Aug 25min

This Is Where True Power Comes From

If you are a slave to your desires, if you are a slave to your fears, if you are a slave to things that were outside of your control, then you are not powerful at all. LIVE Q&A TODAY | If you get our ...

27 Aug 3min

It Takes a Guide To ‘Get’ It | 9 Core Stoic Beliefs

Wisdom doesn’t come from first impressions and it does not come easy. It’s hard work…and the only way to speed up the process is with the help of a great teacher.💡 We designed our How To Read Epictet...

26 Aug 33min

How to Be Freer Than a King

We often imagine that freedom means having more power, more money, or fewer people telling us what to do. But none of that makes us free if we cannot control ourselves.💡 We designed our How To Read E...

25 Aug 3min

Can Journalism Survive the Collapse of Trust?

When everyone else seems to be abandoning their standards, what keeps you from abandoning yours? Ryan talks with USA TODAY national correspondent Rick Jervis, author of The Devil Behind The Badge, abo...

25 Aug 19min

Can You Do This Even Here? | It's In Your Self-Interest

With enough practice, Seneca said, he found he could think anywhere. He could find stillness and peace anywhere.📚 Stillness Is The Key by Ryan Holiday 🎟️ DAILY STOIC LIVE | Ryan Holiday is coming to...

24 Aug 7min

7 Stoic Strategies for Managing Your Time

Most people think about time as something they have plenty of until they suddenly don’t. But Seneca’s warning raises a more unsettling question: how much of your life are you giving away without even ...

23 Aug 15min

The Marcus Aurelius Quote Steven Pressfield Couldn’t Ignore

In today's episode, Ryan and Steven Pressfield discuss one of Marcus Aurelius’ most striking lines: “Life is warfare and a journey far from home.” What begins with the epigraph to Steven’s new novel T...

22 Aug 26min