The Daily Stoic1 Mai 2019

You’ll Never Get To Perfect

Rosanne Cash tells a story in her memoir, Composed about a performance she did with George Harrison. Dress rehearsal had gone wonderfully but the performance didn’t go quite as well. Seeing she was disappointed by that, Harrison walked over and consoled her. “It’s never as good as the rehearsal,” he said.

As with music, so with life.

Even when we do a premeditatio malorum, even when we get everything set just right, we’re still surprised by how things go. We eliminate all the big things that can go wrong, and then it turns out that a couple little things still didn’t go right. It’s just never perfect.

That’s one lesson. The other lesson is that even as we study and rehearse this philosophy, as we plan out the people we want to be, we’re still always going to fall short. And so are other people. Marcus talked about how we can’t go around expecting the world to be Plato’s Republic. He also talked about picking ourselves up when we fall—because we will fall. Epictetus said that he never expected to meet a full sage—he just wanted to meet someone trying to get better. (Confucius, as it happens, said something very similar).

So don’t expect to be perfect today. Don’t expect things to be as good as they were in your head or how you practiced them. Be content to be as good as you can be, while still trying to get a little bit better next time. Because that’s how progress is made and improvement is banked—and it’s the only thing we can count on for sure.

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(3102)

BONUS | 5 Rapid-Fire Stoic Rules for Thinking More Clearly

Before you trust your first reaction, assumption, or opinion, the Stoics would tell you to do a few things first. In this bonus episode, Ryan breaks down five rules for thinking more clearly.🎟️ DAILY...

21 Aug 2min

It’s Your Job To See This Coming | Corralling The Unnecessary

These things happen to people…therefore they could happen to you. 📔 Pick up your own leather bound signed edition of The Daily Stoic! Check it out at the Daily Stoic Store: https://store.dailystoic....

21 Aug 5min

This Is Your Ticket to Freedom | What Ryan Holiday Told Shawn Ryan to Read Next

We may not control what happens to us, what other people decide, or what circumstances take away. But we can still choose what we believe, how we respond, and who we become.💡 We designed our How To R...

20 Aug 13min

Can You Just Shut Up? | Stoicism vs. Epicureanism: Enemies or Allies?

To enter into another person’s mind, even for a moment, we first need to get out of our own head. 📚 Books Mentioned:Working by Robert CaroArt of Happiness by EpicurusLives of the Stoics by Ryan Holid...

19 Aug 24min

Isn’t This What We’re After?

Why is that self-command and self-knowledge so elusive? How can we find it?💡 We designed our How To Read Epictetus (A Daily Stoic Guide) as a personal field guide —part book club, part masterclass, p...

18 Aug 3min

"I’m 56. I Lost My Faith, But I Found Strength in Stoicism"

Keith thought he knew what his purpose was. Then his daughter got sick, his life took an unexpected turn, and Stoicism was put to a test he never expected.If Keith’s story has inspired you to share yo...

18 Aug 7min

BONUS | 11 Things Stoics Never Do

Which of these do you struggle with the most?🎟️ DAILY STOIC LIVE | Ryan Holiday is coming to a city near you! Grab tickets here | https://www.dailystoiclive.com/🎙️ AD-FREE | Support the podcast and...

17 Aug 4min

Oh, You’re Free, Are You? | Only Fools Rush In

We are prickly about our freedom…as we willingly submit to all sorts of addictions. 📚 Books Mentioned: Zero to One by Peter ThielLives of the Stoics by Ryan HolidayBlue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan KimT...

17 Aug 5min