Why Stoicism Matters Today | Ryan Holiday

Ryan Holiday (0:00)

What I think is interesting in Stoicism is that there's this tension between the ambition and the values, right? So if you're not an ambitious person, you're not feeling that tension. But if you are, it really hits you because it's giving you a sense of what being great at something really is. Being great at something is not just being talented.

When you read meditations, you're reading this guy who's the ruler of the known world, like the most powerful person on the planet, and he's having this conversation with himself about all the ways that he needs to constrain himself. Don't do this, do this. You know what's important. He says, just that you do the right thing, the rest doesn't matter. He says, no one's going to remember you 100 years from now. None of that matters. What matters is what you do. And so there's this self-talk element, this self-regulation that I think anyone who is going places or is watching their life trajectory take off, it really helps root you. I remember my 20s having this sense of like, okay, I've been chosen for these things. I'm in rooms or meetings or have responsibilities that are totally inappropriate for my age.

So if I don't have some counterbalance, I remember thinking like, I'm going to spin off the planet. And most young people with potential, whether they're number one draft picks or, you know, startup CEOs, most people crash and burn if you get those things early. And I think stoicism really helped me as a sort of a guiding philosophy, the kind of an even keel, which I needed because I wasn't naturally that way at all.

Michael Gervais (1:50)

Okay, welcome back. Or if you're new, welcome to the Finding Mastery podcast. I am Michael Gervais, and by trade and training, I'm a sport and performance psychologist. Now, what does that mean? That means that these conversations are about the inner life. And it's really about people who are committed to both their craft and their inner life, those that are on the path of mastery, so that we can better understand what they're searching for, how they use their mind, how they develop a psychological framework to excel in life, both from a meaning and purpose and flourishing standpoint, as well as how they sharpen those mental skills to be able to perform in the most exact, the most stressful environments.

And if you want to learn more about how you can train your mind in a disciplined, organized, thoughtful way, this is just a quick little reminder here to check out the online psychological skills training course that I created with the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, Pete Carroll. And what we did is we just pull back the curtain and show you all the best practices to help you train your mind, not only to flourish, but to be able to live a purposeful and meaningful life. And then also those same skills, how they apply in the most stressful, high-pressured environments, so that you can live towards your very best. Now, with that being said, all you got to do is punch over to findingmastery.net forward slash course, check out what we built.

I want to take a minute here to announce a really exciting event that we have coming up. As you continue to navigate the challenges and opportunities of 2024, I want to pose a question. What are you doing right now to be great with stress? How are you working with stress on your pursuit towards your most important ambitions and goals? And I just want to get right to the heart of the key elements, one in particular, for what it takes to excel in today's high heat, high stakes world. Because stress is not the problem that we think it is. Stress is a synonym for change. And our ability to be agile with change, that is the real opportunity at hand. So if you're wanting to unlock extraordinary results and sustainable performance in your life, it's not about avoiding or reducing stress. And as simple as that sounds, it's very tricky to do, but it is about fundamentally changing your relationship with it. And that's why I'm so thrilled to invite you to a special event. It's a free virtual event that we're offering, and it's called The Power of Embracing Stress. It's on Wednesday, March 6th at 2 p.m. Pacific. So to sign up, just head over to findingmastery.com/training, whether it's advancing in your career or improving your health or cultivating stronger relationships, I think a new approach to stress can be one of the most powerful unlocks for you in your life. So join us for this free virtual training, The Power of Embracing Stress, on Wednesday, March 6th at 2 p.m. Pacific. Go to findingmastery.com/training to sign up once again. That's findingmastery.com/training, and I'm really excited to see you there.