Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, Epictetus— they constitute the bedrock of what is known as
Stoicism, an ancient philosophy that was once one of the most popular civic disciplines
in the West, practiced by the rich and the impoverished, the powerful and the struggling
alike in the pursuit of the Good Life.
In this video we will see 21 life lessons that we can learn from these masters of stoicism.
Let’s get started!
1.
Change What You Can—Forget the Rest The single most important practice in Stoic philosophy
is differentiating between what we can change and what we can’t.
What we have influence over and what we do not.
As Epictetus wrote, “The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters
so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which
have to do with the choices I actually control.”
2.
Start Living — This is one of Seneca’s most memorable quips: “You are afraid of
dying.
But, come now, how is this life of yours anything but death?”
Our fear of dying often begs the question: To protect what exactly?
For a lot of people the answer is: hours of television, gossiping, gorging, wasting potential,
reporting to a boring job, and on and on and on.
Today, start living!
3.
Pause And Be Grateful — Think of all the things you can be grateful for today.
That you are alive, that you live in a time primarily of peace, that you have enough health,
leisure and access to an internet connection to read this article.
As Seneca wrote to his friend Lucilius, “In all things we should try to make ourselves
be as grateful as possible.”
4.
Remember That You Can’t Be Broken — Someone can throw you in chains, but they don’t
have the power to change who you are.
Even under the worst torture and cruelties that humans can inflict on one another, our
power over our own mind and our power to make our own decisions can’t be broken.
As Epictetus has said, “You can bind up my leg, but not even Zeus has the power to
break my freedom of choice.”
5.
Be Kind — Most rudeness, meanness, and cruelty are a mask for deep-seated weakness.
Kindness in these situations is only possible for people of great strength.
You have that strength.
Use it.
As Marcus Aurelius put it, “For what can even the most malicious person do if you keep
showing kindness and, if given the chance, you gently point out where they went wrong—right
as they are trying to harm you?”
6.
See The Bigger Picture — The Emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote to himself to “think of the
whole universe of matter and how small your share.”
The earth, as far as science tells us, is some 4.5 billion years old and shows no sign
of ending soon.
Our time on the earth, on the other hand, will be what?
Several decades, maybe?
Consider this the next time you feel self-important, or like everything rises and falls on what
you do next.
It doesn’t.
You’re just one person among many, doing your best among many.
7.
Focus Inward—Don’t Judge Others — “Let philosophy scrape off your own faults, rather
than be a way to rail against the faults of others,” wrote Seneca.
The proper direction of philosophy is focused inward—to make ourselves better and to leave
other people to that task for themselves and their own journey.
Leave other people to their faults.
8.
Be A Force For Good — In your life, it’s not enough to just not do evil.
You must also be a force for good in the world, as best you can.
As Marcus Aurelius wrote, “Often injustice lies in what you aren’t doing, not only
in what you are doing.”
9.
Watch Your Words — “Better to trip with the feet than with the tongue,” Zeno wrote.
You can always get up after you fall, but remember, what has been said can never be
unsaid.
Especially cruel and hurtful things.
10.
Do Your Job — In his Meditations, Marcus Aurelius asks himself: “What is your vocation?”
He then answers: “To be a good person.”
The Stoics believed, above all else, that our job on this earth is to be a good human
being.
It is a basic duty, yet we are experts at coming up with excuses for avoiding it.
As coach Bill Belichick put it: “Do your job.”
11.
Trust Yourself — In Seneca’s essay on tranquility, he uses the Greek word euthymia,
which he defines as “believing in yourself and trusting that you are on the right path,
and not being in doubt by following the myriad footpaths of those wandering in every direction.”
Know where you are going.
Trust yourself and don’t be distracted by others.
12.
Remember You Are Going to Die — “Let each thing you would do, say or intend be like
that of a dying person,” Marcus Aurelius wrote.
Don’t let another day tick away in ignorance of the reality that you’re a dying person.
We all are.
Can today be the day we stop pretending otherwise?
13.
Review Your Day — In a letter to his older brother Novatus, Seneca describes a beneficial
exercise he borrowed from another prominent philosopher.
At the end of each day he would ask himself variations of the following questions: What
bad habit did I curb today?
How am I better?
Were my actions just?
How can I improve?
Take the time today and review your day.
14.
Watch the Wise — Seneca wrote that, “Without a ruler to do it against, you can’t make
crooked straight.”
That is the role of wise people in our lives—to serve as model and inspiration.
To bounce our ideas off and test our presumptions.
Who that person will be for you is up to you.
But pick someone, watch what they do (and what they don’t do), and do your best to
do the same.
15.
You Can’t Have It All—Learn to Prioritize — “Don’t set your heart on so many things,”
says Epictetus.
Prioritize.
Train your mind to ask: Do I need this thing?
What will happen if I do not get it?
The answers to these questions will help you relax, help you cut out all the needless things
that make you busy—too busy to be balanced or happy.
16.
Kill Your Ego & Self-Delusion — Self-deception, delusions of grandeur—these aren’t just
annoying personality traits.
Ego is more than just off-putting and obnoxious.
Instead, it’s the sworn enemy of our ability to learn and grow.
As Epictetus put it, “It is impossible for a person to begin to learn what he thinks
he already knows.”
17.
Receive Honors & Slights The Same Way — Do not take the slights of the day personally—or
the exciting rewards and recognitions either.
Trivial details like the rise and fall of your position say nothing about you as a person.
Treat both success and failure with indifference—focus on doing and being your best.
The effort has to be enough.
Become immune to the seduction of external events.
As Marcus Aurelius put it, “Receive without pride, let go without attachment.”
18.
Don’t Sell Yourself Too Cheaply — “I say, let no one rob me of a single day who
isn’t going to make a full return on the loss,” Seneca wrote in one of his essays.
Because we don’t exactly know how many days we’ll be alive, and because we try our hardest
not to think about the fact that someday we’ll die, we’re pretty liberal with how freely
we spend our time.
We let people and obligations impose on that time, only rarely asking: What am I getting
in return here?
19.
Remember We Are All Mortal — “Both Alexander the Great and his mule-keeper were both brought
to the same place by death,” Marcus Aurelius wrote.
We all face the same end.
Whether you conquer the known world or shine the shoes of the people who do, at the end
death will be a radical equalizer—a lesson in abject humility.
In death, no one is better, no one is worse.
20.
Accept The Haters As They Are — The Stoic does two things when encountering hatred or
ill opinion in others.
They ask: Is this opinion inside my control?
If there is a chance for influence or change, they take it.
But if there isn’t, they accept this person as they are.
Our job is tough enough already.
We don’t have time to think about what other people are thinking, even if it’s about
us.
21.
Cultivate Empathy & Selflessness — As Seneca observed, it’s possible to learn to “rejoice
in all their successes and be moved by their every failure.”
This is what a virtuous person does.
They teach themselves to actively cheer for other people—even in cases where that might
come at their own expense—and to put aside jealousy and possessiveness.
You can do that too.
Now tell me, which of these 21 lessons in stoicism did you enjoy the most?
If you like, let me know by leaving a comment below the video.
If you liked this video, don’t miss the video “7 Life Lessons From Albert Einstein”
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