BONUS: Clock’s Ticking—You Listening?

Cato, one of the most vaunted and towering Stoics, built a reputation and a career out of his refusal to give an inch in the face of pressure. He fought to keep Rome as it was, as it always had been. He refused political compromise in every form. Cato was Cato. He could never be anything but rigid, upright, and strong.But Cato’s inflexibility did not always best serve the public good.---And in today's Ask Daily Stoic, Ryan answers questions during the Q&A session of the Daily Stoic Stoicism 101 Course. Topics covered include the similarities between Stoicism and tenants of the 12-Step program, how to do the deep work that you enjoy without getting bogged down by the less enjoyable tasks that come along with it, and how to deal with information overload.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

31 Aug 202311min

Ryan speaks with Rainn Wilson about his new book Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution, why the guy who played Dwight Schrute wrote a book on spirituality, how anyone can find a thread to the transcendent anywhere any time, how Stoicism is helping cure the crisis that young men are in today, what the Stoics would have said about climate change, and more. Rainn Wilson is an actor, comedian, author, podcaster, writer, and director. He is most known for his role as Dwight Schrute on the NBC sitcom The Office (2005-2013), for which he earned three consecutive Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. Highlights of Rainn’s extensive film and television credits include Galaxy Quest (1999), Almost Famous (2000), Full Frontal (2003), Six Feet Under (2003-2005) and Mom (2018-2021). Outside of acting, Wilson published his autobiography, The Bassoon King, in 2015, and co-founded the digital media company SoulPancake in 2008, and as an author and podcaster he spreads a message of building togetherness and community by way of spiritual and philosophical awakening within the global culture. You can follow Rainn on Instagram @rainnwilson and Twitter @rainnwilson, and on soulboom.com.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

30 Aug 20231h

It’s easy to nod along with a book (or even this email) when you’re reading it. Or to double-tap the like button when you see an inspiring Instagram post.But how long does this stay with you? How quickly will its message flutter away? It’s a critical problem for all of us out there who are trying to get better. Who are trying to actually live the principles of philosophy, and to rely on it in life’s stressful moments, as well as life’s ordinary hours.Inspired by the French painter Philippe de Champaign famous painting “Still Life with a Skull,” the sterling silver and brass ring, created by LHN Jewelry in Brooklyn, New York, features the three essentials of existence – the tulip (life), the skull (death), and the hourglass (time).The inside is engraved with Marcus Aurelius’s timeless words: “You could leave life right now…” What’s left to the wearer is to repeat to themselves the final half of his quote: “…Let that determine what you do and say and think.” Grab yours at dailystoic.com/MMring.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

30 Aug 20235min

Marcus Aurelius must have wondered what he did to deserve all this. First, he lost his father at age three. Then he was pulled from his first love, philosophy, and pushed into politics. When he finally became emperor, roughly 200 years of peace exploded into 19 years of border wars and civil strife.There was a plague.There were floods.He had crippling health problems.At some point, as he buried another one of his children, as he wept over the ceaseless toll from disease and pestilence, he must have thought: Haven’t I given enough? When will this end? What fresh horrors await?Yet somehow, someway, he never managed to give himself over to this despair. He kept going.---And in today's Daily Stoic video, Ryan discusses why the Stoics cherished and preached the value of recognizing the interconnectedness of everything, every being in the world, and how that belief guided them to treating their fellow human beings with love and respect.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

29 Aug 202310min

Marcus Aurelius never claimed to be a Stoic.Gregory Hays, one of Marcus Aurelius’s best translators (the one we worked with on our beautiful premium edition), writes, “If he had to be identified with a particular school, [Stoicism] is surely the one he would have chosen. Yet I suspect that if asked what it was that he studied, his answer would not have been ‘Stoicism’ but simply ‘philosophy.’”---And with today's meditation from The Daily Stoic Journal, Ryan discusses why Marcus Aurelius viewed procrastination as a form of arrogance.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more, including the Premium Leather Edition of Meditations.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

28 Aug 20237min

In today’s audiobook reading, Ryan presents an excerpt from one of the seminal texts of Stoicism, the Discourses of Epictetus, read by Michael Reid. As a series of lectures given by Epictetus that were written down by his pupil Arrian in 108 A.D., these discourses provide practical advice to think on and practice in order to move oneself closer toward the ultimate goal of living free and happy. In this third section, Epictetus discusses how we should see ourselves in comparison with the gods.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

27 Aug 20234min

Ryan speaks with Christina Pazsitzky in the second of a two-part interview about what really matters in life, why studying history reveals how strange life is, enjoying what you have while you have it, how to navigate social media as a parent, and more.Christina Pazsitzky is a stand-up comedian, podcaster, writer, host and TV personality. Since starting her comedy career in 1997, Christina has been known for her intelligent, thought-provoking, and hilarious takes on the realities of women’s issues, motherhood, and popular culture. In addition to touring the world, she has released four comedy specials, two of which have been featured on Netflix: Mother Inferior (2017), and Mom Genes (2023). Christina and her husband and fellow comedian Tom Segura host the hugely successful podcast "Your Mom’s House" together, and she also hosts her own podcast, the popular “Where My Moms At?” where she discusses motherhood. You can find more about Christina’s work, tour dates, and booking information at christinaponline.com and on Instagram @thechristinap, Twitter @christinap, and on her YouTube channel christinacomedy.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

26 Aug 20231h 2min

This is not another note about memento mori.It’s about a different immutable, inescapable law of human existence that comes to us from the Stoics through Heraclitus (one of Marcus Aurelius’ favorites): Character is fate.---And in today's excerpt from The Daily Stoic, Ryan explains why the Stoics believed it was so important to honor the past, but not to live in it.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

25 Aug 20239min