The Stoic's Secret
Leaning into an ancient wisdom
Recently on my morning walks I’ve been listening to Ryan Holiday via his podcast and audio books. He is a modern philosopher and a best selling author. He is well known for his insights that draw on stoicism. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed listening to him talk. Not only is he wise, positive and easy to listen to, his perspective on life is very reassuring and soothing especially on a warm balmy morning like it was earlier today. One of my favourite Ryan Holiday books is ‘Stillness Is Key’ - this book explores the concept of stillness as a source of strength and clarity. Ryan demonstrates how finding inner peace can lead to success in a chaotic world.
Last week I’d say my days were more chaotic than calm.
Mainly due to the ridgebacks getting up to lots of mischief, the fact the school Summer holidays were drawing to a close (and all the mayhem that comes with that), plus, juggling the highs and lows of running a small business.
So this week I’m planning for a much calmer week.
I am going to apply what I’ve learnt from Ryan and lean into being more STOIC.
But what does that actually mean?
Stoicism, founded in Ancient Greece, is a philosophy that places great emphasis on personal virtue, rationality and the pursuit of wisdom, which basically means to live a life with purpose. What I love most about Stoicism, is that its fundamental teaching is that we can’t control external events, but we can control our responses to them.
Oh hallelujah!
I think I need to try and be more stoic. I like the fact it’s about cultivating emotional intelligence, focusing on being more resilient and finding inner peace even though life can throw quite a few unexpected curve balls.
What about you? Have you ever embraced being more stoic?
This is how I’m going to try to apply stoicism into my week…
Journal - I’ll use stoic prompts this week for my daily journaling practice
Practice Mindfulness - I’m going to enjoy every last drop of the late Summer sunshine, by being more present and appreciate the small joys around me. Which means I’m going to sit in the sunshine with a nice cuppa and a good book for half an hour. Why the hell not eh?!
Letting Go - I’ll remind myself of the stoic idea of accepting what I cannot change. And work on my reactions to life’s challenges, including any dramas my mischievous ridgebacks get up to this week.
Finding Strength In Virtues - my word of the week is ‘courage’ and I’ll put it at the forefront of any decisions I make, no matter how difficult they may be.
Wish me luck! Oh and do let me know if you’d like to join me on being more stoic this week. Here is a stoic journaling prompt, just in case you’d like to try one…
‘What can I control today, and what should I let go of? How can I best use my resources and energy for the day ahead?’
Until the next time
Take care & stay safe xxx
Stoic principles are at the basis of Al Anon and the serenity prayer: grant me the courage to change what I can, the serenity to accept what I cannot change and the wisdom to know the difference. The whole programme focuses on the self and on acting rather than reacting. It's changing my life, my relationships, my outlook... What is interesting is that it's easy to talk about these principles but knowing how to apply them is much harder, and for me the way to unravel the the big picture from the small pieces that make up the puzzle of life is to take basic acts and look at motivations. From picking up my phone because I'm bored, angry, frustrated to listening to my body when I have been sitting down for too long. The courage it takes to do something about these small things is nothing brave but it is momentous in the way it changes my wellbeing. Anyway. I'll stop rabbiting on...
Good luck for your week, you'll nail it I'm sure.
Stocism - I live it... I used to teach about Stoics in an Ancient World course I was leading. Of course it is a great way of life today and after the weekend I have had/having I will be using your stoical prompts to help re-balance. Wishing you success