“Is there anything finer than this practice of examining one’s entire day?” Seneca asked. “Think of the sleep that follows this self-inspection,” he said, “how peaceful, deep, and free, when the mind has been either praised or admonished, when the sentinel and secret censor of the self has conducted its inquiry into one’s character.” Creating a practice […]
Is there a better definition of Stoicism than this? Is there a better verse to define what we ought to aspire to be today? It comes to us from Walt Whitman, who cherished the Stoics and funneled their wisdom into his energetic form of Americanism and transcendental poetry. “O while I live to be the […]
Your first encounter with rudeness this morning might be the neighbor who was mowing their lawn at 7am.It might be the person who went out of turn at the stoplight. It might be the person who, not content even with the extra room of their first class seat, needs to impede on your personal space and […]
Bestselling author and investor Tim Ferriss has been one of the most vocal modern proponents of Stoicism. For years he has advocated the value of the philosophy—whether it is on his widely popular blog which is read by millions, on his podcast which at this point has over 200 million downloads or on the stage […]
“What is quite unlooked for is more crushing in its effect, and unexpectedness adds to the weight of a disaster. This is a reason for ensuring that nothing ever takes us by surprise. We should project our thoughts ahead of us at every turn and have in mind every possible eventuality instead of only the […]
Only a select few would look back on their high school years and use the word thrilled to describe their experience of reading Plato. But that was exactly how Emily Wilson felt, and she loved that philosophy was so deeply concerned with how people should or could live. Since then, she has been immersed in […]
Most people know Arianna Huffington as the founder of the Huffington Post and Thrive Global (as well as board member of Uber and bestselling author), but they probably don’t know that she is also a student and admirer of philosophy. It’s fitting that as a Greek she would love the subject, yet it is still […]
There’s an old joke: The best way to punish someone is to give them exactly what they wish for. Nowhere is this more true than fame. How many actors and musicians dreamed their whole life of hitting it big, only to find themselves unhappy when it happens for them? How many business people crave recognition […]
We recently had the opportunity to discuss Stoicism, Cynicism and much more with Robert Woolston who is an author and researcher on topics related to philosophy and history. He has a Masters of Library & Information Science (MLIS) from the University of South Carolina and is currently enrolled in a Philosophy program at the University […]